WORCESTER—Worcester residents and business-owners gathered at Roosevelt Elementary School on Wednesday afternoon, when city and school leaders unveiled recent improvements to the traffic and parking issues that have been plaguing the community on and around Grafton Street for the past few years.
Before the project began, school pick-up and drop-off traffic would line up and down Grafton St., often causing major delays at various times of the day. This issue had been on the city’s radar for years; District 3 City Councilor George Russell said they had acquired the property for the project before the COVID pandemic.
The project, with a budget of $1.6 million, included the development of a new drop-off lane and 41 additional parking spaces, as well as new side-walks and cross-walks. The school’s principal, Maureen Power, has already noticed a “dramatic difference” in traffic flow.
The traffic problem was not only an issue of inconvenience, but also one of safety, experts argued. Russell said residents worried that fire trucks or ambulances might be delayed trying to get down the streets.
Worcester School Committee Member Dianna Biancheria praised the collaboration behind the project, noting the ongoing and open conversations between city and school officials. Biancheria described the project as a strong example of how effectively the city government can work.
“Our city manager, our mayor and Councilor Russell worked very hard collaborating with Worcester public schools and on coming up with the funds,” she said.
Traffic build-up has also had a significant impact on local businesses, often blocking parking lots and deterring customers from entering the area. City Manager Eric Batista acknowledged the community’s lengthy wait on the project’s completion, adding, “Thank you to the business community for being patient. I know it’s been a lot of years of struggle and challenges, and that it has impacted either your businesses or residences in this area.” Batista also said he empathized with their difficulties, as he lives in the area.
Standing on the fresh pavement outside the elementary school, Mayor Joseph Petty recognized the effect the traffic issues had on the community’s quality of life, and said he was excited for it to finally be done.
“This was important to us, this was important to the school committee, this was important to the city council,” said Petty.
While this project solves the traffic issues for Roosevelt, but many argue there is much more to be done. Biancheria noted she is already looking ahead. “We have a number of schools that have a lot of these issues—parking and traffic congestion—and we’re going to be back on the board and figuring out what we can do next,” she said.
Caroline Lacy is an English student at Worcester State University, exploring journalism and storytelling, with a focus on culture and human-interest stories. She can be reached at clacy@worcester.edu.
