‘A Literal Death Trap’: Locals Call For Action After Fatal Melrose Crash

MELROSE, MA — A fatal crash on the Lynn Fells Parkway in Melrose late Sunday night prompted new calls for action in an area that residents and local leaders have said has long been a spot of concern.

The crash, which killed a 41-year-old Randolph man, also sent two other people to the hospital. It took place near the intersection of the Lynn Fells Parkway, Linden Road and Elm Street in Melrose when a car crossed the centerline of the road before careening into another car, a tree and two parked cars in a driveway, according to State Police.

Patch has reached out to the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), which manages the parkway, for comment on this crash and recent safety concerns. DCR did not respond with a comment prior to publication.

Melrose City Councilor Ryan Williams shared his thoughts on social media hours after the crash, though, calling the spot “a literal death trap.”

Residents then published an open letter to the DCR detailing several recent crashes and a combination of short-term and long-term responses they hope to see.

Together, local leaders and residents have said the parkway needs continued action to address safety concerns they say have brought death and injury into Melrose.

"As neighbors, we can no longer tolerate a so-called 'parkway' that regularly produces violence and death on our doorsteps and makes our community unsafe to cross, whether on foot, mobility device, bicycle, or even in a car," residents wrote in their letter.

Neighbors Push For Crossing Guard

The Lynn Fells Parkway links the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Melrose, Malden, Medford, Stoneham and Winchester to the Breakheart Reservation in Saugus. The parkway itself runs through Stoneham, Melrose, and Saugus.

Data viewed through the state Department of Transportation (MassDOT) on Wednesday showed at least 198 crashes on the Lynn Fells Parkway in Melrose dating back to the beginning of 2016. Of those, 50 caused at least one non-fatal injury, according to MassDOT.

This latest incident involved two cars late at night. As incidents have mounted, however, community members have noted pedestrian concerns posed by traffic on the parkway.

A push for a new permanent crossing guard at the intersection of the parkway and Nelson Road has recently galvanized some of those concerns less than a quarter mile from both the site of Sunday’s deadly crash and the nearby Horace Mann School.

“Our kids should be able to have the independence to cross and walk to school independently,” Melrose parent Mandy Ladner told Patch last week.

Ladner has been part of the effort to get the crossing guard position added at Nelson Road. She said that she has been worried about another school year where her student may be unable to safely walk to the Horace Mann School due to hazards at the Lynn Fells Parkway.

Ladner credited area leaders involved in efforts.

Contacted on Tuesday, several of those leaders said more needs to be done.

“That area is a major concern to me, as it rightly is to families and students in the area,” School Committee Chair Jen McAndrew said. “We made some progress this summer, and we need everyone to continue working on this issue.”

McAndrew thanked the city of Melrose, Police Chief Michael Lyle, Rep. Kate Lipper-Garabedian, other state officials and area families for their work.

“Drivers absolutely must do their part: slow down and prioritize bikers and walkers at all times of day,” she added.

Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur echoed some of McAndrew’s comments, saying that, while stakeholders have made progress toward placing a DCR crossing guard at Nelson Road, “there's still some work to do there to get (the DCR) to yes.”

Parkway Problems Need DCR Help, Officials Say

For many local leaders and residents, the burden of improving safety throughout the Lynn Fells Parkway does fall first at the feet of the DCR.

“We need them to come to the table with some ideas about how to make that stretch of road safer,” Brodeur told Patch on Tuesday.

“We're certainly happy to do our part, but it is their road and their responsibility,” he later added.

The DCR has noted some issues on the parkway, identifying 11 spots in need of improvements in a 2020 Master Plan for their broader parkway network.

Recommended improvements on the Lynn Fells Parkway ranged from relocated crosswalks to new separated bike lanes.

The DCR has worked with the State Police to place enforcement details along the parkway route in an effort to cut down on dangerous driving in recent years, Brodeur said. The agency has staffed some crossing guards at troublesome intersections. Elsewhere in Melrose, it has also worked with other state and local officials to develop a more targeted redesign at the intersection of the Fellsway and Melrose Street, Brodeur said.

Where problems continue, Brodeur said the DCR faces a series of uphill battles in curbing driver behavior in spots where speeding and other infractions can be common.

“It's a bit challenging to engineer (solutions to) some of the, bluntly, crazy, stupid things that some drivers do,” Brodeur said.

That being said, Brodeur said the DCR should take a broader view to provide “engineering solutions” to a wide range of problems across the local parkway network.

“We need a more comprehensive solution,” Brodeur said. “I'm not sure what that is. But there are folks out there that make their living doing this.”

Neighbors Note Crash Impacts

This weekend’s crash was the first fatal crash on the parkway since at least 2016, according to MassDOT. Nevertheless, area homeowner John O'Donnell said it followed just a matter of months after another serious crash in nearly the exact same location.

In May, O'Donell said he was sleeping when a driver crashed into a large maple tree outside his home on the Lynn Fells Parkway.

This past weekend, O'Donell said he and his wife were then watching TV when they heard what sounded like an explosion. They soon saw vehicle wreckage in their driveway.

"It was immediately clear that the driver didn't make it," O'Donnell said.

Authorities had not publicly identified the victim in Sunday's crash as of Thursday afternoon. O'Donell shared sympathy for the victim's loved ones, though.

On Thursday, an assortment of candles and other mementos adorned an impromptu memorial at the crash site.

"I can't imagine losing someone that way," O’Donnell said.

He added that crashes like this have an impact on witnesses like his family.

"From our perspective, the first one could have been a fluke," he said. "But now that it's happened twice, and it's this one was even closer to our home, we're at a point right now where we kind of don't feel safe in the house."

Kim Giles lives across the street from O'Donell and said her family has also seen a least one crash directly impact their property in recent years.

"It's scary," she said, adding that her family no longer feels comfortable walking on the sidewalks along the Lynn Fells Parkway.

Residents jointly noted some similar impacts in their letter to the DCR.

"Most of us will not walk near Lynn Fells Parkway out of concern for our safety," they wrote. "Other vulnerable uses, such as letting our children walk along or across Lynn Fells Parkway, are out of the question."

'We've got to go right up the ladder'

Brodeur said the issue of safety on the parkway would be “front and center” at a planned monthly meeting with Melrose’s legislative delegation this week.

Writing on Monday, residents called the parkway "one of the most dangerous and poorly designed roads in Melrose."

They asked the DCR to add short-term solutions as soon as possible. They also asked for a study group to begin looking at safety on the parkway before the end of the year and called for local elected officials to "hold DCR officials to account for fulfilling the agency’s obligation to steward safe travel corridors that prioritize recreational use."

"There is a bitter irony in the fact that a road built and maintained by the Commonwealth specifically for recreational purposes is also probably the one where Melrosians are most likely to feel unsafe," residents wrote. "Sadly, the roadway design of Lynn Fells Parkway shows little concern for the neighborhood’s residential character and the road’s recreational purpose."

Residents addressed their letter to DCR Commissioner Doug Rice and copied Brodeur, City Councilor John Obremski, State Sen. Jason Lewis, Lipper-Garabedian and the Melrose Pedestrian and Bicyclist Committee on it.

Contacted on Tuesday, Lipper-Garabedian noted her “deep sorrow and sympathy for the loss of life” in Sunday’s recent parkway crash.

“This latest crash reinforces the need for additional, permanent improvements by DCR,” she continued. “I will continue to press the Department to act with a great sense of urgency to ensure our streets are safe."

“We've got to go right up the ladder on this and make sure that we get the attention that we deserve,” Brodeur said.

The Melrose Pedestrian and Bicyclist Committee has launched an online petition also calling for safety enhancements on the Lynn Fells Parkway. View that here.

UPDATE: The DCR responded to resident concerns about the Lynn Fells Parkway in a letter on Sept. 13, promising a safety review. The DCR announced the results of its previous safety review in late November, noting a series of planned safety measures along the Lynn Fells Parkway.