Letter to the Editor of the Acton Exchange
By Erik J. Heels
First published 2025-06-22; ActonExchange.org; publisher: The Acton Exchange.
Multiple times per year, Acton’s Department of Public Works (DPW) schedules a hazardous materials (hazmat) turn-in day. During these events, traffic predictably backs up onto Forest Road from the DPW entrance, turning Forest Road into a dangerous one-lane road. Weeks before the hazmat event, multiple Forest Road residents contacted both the Acton Police and the Acton DPW about pedestrian safety concerns during past hazmat events and were assured that there would be police presence and traffic control this time around.
But during the June 21, 2025 DPW hazmat day, there was no police presence and no traffic control on Forest Road. Acton did nothing, ignoring the reasonable safety concerns of the Forest Road neighborhood. Nobody was directing traffic. Nobody was preventing cars from unreasonably endangering pedestrians.
Watch the video below and note how one driver (at the 1:50 point) even FLASHED THEIR HIGH BEAMS AT ME, as if I had no right to walk on the side of the road.
In cities and in towns, roadways are designed for – and meant to be shared amongst – bicycles, cars. and pedestrians. Whether or not the roads have sidewalks (which they should).
Erik J. Heels
DWP Hazmat Day – cars driving on wrong side of the road
This is a still image from the video, click link for full video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTU53cRBDgc (Photo and Video credit: Erik J. Heels)
