More Route 114 Changes Coming Soon: Share Concerns, Ask Questions At Public Meeting

DANVERS, MA — The narrowing of lanes on Route 114 in Danvers and Peabody and the shortening of turning lane stretches that a safety data study determined were being used as travel lanes are among the planned safety changes set for implementation this spring and summer.

Those changes will be the topic of a public meeting on May 17 designed to update residents on the changes coming to what has been called a "death alley" and "suicide" stretch of roadway the data study determined was the site of nearly 300 crashes over a recent three-year span, with 16 fatal crashes over the past two decades.

The meeting is set for Peabody City Hall from 6 to 8 p.m. Residents and stakeholders will have the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback to the state Department of Transportation team.

Tier 1 changes implemented this past fall included optimizing traffic signal timing to increase motorist and pedestrian safety at intersections, updating warning and regulatory signage to increase visibility, improving and adding accessible crosswalks and installing new pavement markings at select locations along the corridor to provide a safer driving experience.

The more substantial changes planned for this spring and summer are aimed to "improve safety incrementally" in the short- and mid-term while a longer-term fix for the road is considered.

The road that connects Route 1 in Danvers and Route 128 in Peabody was the scene, as of December 2021, of 16 fatal accidents, 1,627 non-fatal accidents and 3,260 property damage accidents, totaling more than 5,400 total accidents on the Peabody stretch of the roadway alone in the previous 19 years.

The state Road Safety Audit process conducted with state and local officials in the spring of 2022 documented 285 crashes over a three-year period, including four recent fatal crashes.

While elected officials, residents and surviving family members of crash victims urged action on the notorious stretch of road for years, there was some pushback to the changes — especially in Peabody — during public meetings in the fall with some saying that they added congestion to the roadway without making it any safer.

A website on the proposals and to solicit feedback can be found here.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at [email protected]. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)