By Sharron Luttrell

The long-anticipated improvements to Rte. 16 are set to start next month, but that’s just the beginning. The project, 10 years in the making, is expected to take another three years to complete.

The state Department of Transportation identified the 1.9-mile stretch between Taft Avenue and the Hopedale town line for an upgrade in February 2016.

Drivers should expect periods of traffic disruption, but it won’t be constant. Message boards on Rte. 16 and the police department’s Facebook page will keep travelers updated, Police Chief David Kurczy said.

“I think you’re going to have periods where there’s going to be an extreme disruption to the traffic flow,” Kurczy said. “It’s not going to be three years of constant construction. There will be downtime. Especially in the winter.”

Plans call for:

• Installing traffic lights at both the Maple Street and Hartford Avenue West intersections
• Adding turning lanes at the North Avenue intersection
• Reconfiguring the Millville Road intersection
• Adding bicycle lanes and sidewalks
• Resurfacing the road

Traffic flow, not crashes, reason for new signals

The intersections of Rte. 16 at Maple Street and Hartford Avenue West can be hair-raising for drivers, but crashes at those locations aren’t common. Motor vehicle accident stats during 2022-2025 break down as follows:

Kurczy said the Rte. 16 project is designed to relieve traffic congestion, especially during rush hour.

“(Rte.) 16 is a major route for morning traffic,” he said. “There’s a lot of rush hour traffic that makes it a pain to drive through Mendon.”

The first phase, set to begin in March, will focus on drainage and utility work and will take up to a year and a half to complete, Mendon Highway Department Superintendent Jonathan Dudley said.

During the planning phase, town and state officials discussed reconfiguring Maple Street as a one-way road, but ultimately opted for the traffic light after determining the alternative would increase traffic volume elsewhere, according to Dudley.

The Civil War monument that stands at that intersection will be moved back 10 feet to accommodate the changes. The state had proposed moving it to another part of town.

“We voiced our concern. We said we’d like to keep it there. So that’s what’s going to happen, if possible,” Dudley said.

Assuming no holdups, the project will be complete in August 2029.