Heavily traveled Hingham roadway on the way to major improvements

The stretch of Hingham roadway that traverses Route 3A, the Rotary, and Summer Street is slated for a redesign that will bring safety improvements to that corridor, one well traveled by residents of Hull.

The design plans, which will include a modern roundabout and a so-called road diet on Summer Street between Martins Lane and the Hingham Rotary, will be presented at a remote meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 7 p.m.

The redesign of the overall state-owned corridor, geared toward enhancing the safety of pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists, is scheduled for construction in 2025 after spending more than a decade in the development stage.

The project also includes: a westbound turning lane at the Summer and North Street intersection, traffic signal and intersection improvements, improved pedestrian walkways on both sides of the roadway where possible, landscaping, and a shared-use path along the waterfront.

A pilot road diet program was implemented from May 20-July 26, 2018, in a cooperative effort among Hingham, Hull, and Cohasset town officials.

The purpose of temporarily reducing the four-lane roadway from Muzzi’s Corner (included at that time but not in the current plan) to the Hingham Rotary to one travel lane in each direction was to measure in real-time traffic patterns and impacts and to validate computer modeling of proposed long-term safety solutions for the busy corridor.

The road diet was initially implemented due to speeding issues and the high number of accidents that posed serious safety concerns in that area.

Since 2015, Hingham has hosted more than a dozen public meetings and worked collaboratively with Hull and Cohasset administrators and public safety officials to ensure that access and public safety concerns are addressed.

Project engineers from Design Consultants Inc. have been working closely with Hingham’s town engineer, J.R. Frey, the Hingham Route 3A Task Force, and public safety representatives from all three towns to move the project through the Massachusetts Department of Transportation design approval process.

After an initial investment of $575,000 by Hingham for engineering design plans, the state and federal governments are expected to fund the remainder of the estimated $13 million cost. State Rep. Joan Meschino, a Hull resident, and state Sen. Patrick O’Connor assisted Hingham in securing state funding.