An Interesting Email Thread from DOT about the Killing of the Trees on Route 6, and the transformation of Rt. 6 into the new Rt. 24: MassDOT: Thanks for all your help. It looks like there is no change and you are going to what you had planned all along regardless of public outcry and the concerns of the legislative delegation. Rep. Sarah Peake Room 540, State House Boston, MA 02133 617.722.2090 508.487.5694 Sent from my iPad On Oct 10, 2014, at 3:55 PM, Morris, Kerry C (DOT) wrote: Dear Legislators & Staff, Thank you all for recently taking the time to participate in the Mid Cape Highway RT 6 resurfacing project meeting. In an effort to follow up on the thoughts and opinions that were shared throughout the meeting, I wanted to provide you with an update on this project. MassDOT’s District 5 Highway officials remarked upon the purpose for removal of trees and project scope as a method to provide safe travel routes for the public. Massachusetts State Police, Major Thomas of Troop D, provided remarks related to roadway safety being the State Police’s core mission and the commitment to partner with MassDOT to ensure safe routes of travel. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation includes items for tree removal within a designated clear zone on pavement restoration projects using federal guidelines. When determining a clear zone width, the speed of the road is factored into the proposed clearing. The clear zone width on this project is 25 feet from the edge of road. At this time, no formal waiver exists to waive this type of work. This section of roadway was resurfaced approximately 15 years ago. MassDOT personnel attended Conservation Committee meetings in both Bourne and Sandwich to discuss the project’s scope and the Request for Determination of Applicability. See meeting minutes attached. Glare of oncoming traffic in this area should not be a significant factor due to the width and geography of the median. The District has met with the General Contractor who will be hiring an arborist to outline the future work as well as the restoration plan. Moving forward, the District will be contacting your office to coordinate future quarterly meetings with the Cape Cod Delegation to discuss this project and other area projects in an effort to keep the delegation informed. If there are additional questions concerning this issue, please forward them to me and I will do my best to provide answers. I look forward to working with you as your District 5 Legislative Liaison. Please always feel free to contact me if I can assist you with information on this or any other issue. Sincerely, Kerry C. Morris Legislative Liaison Plymouth, Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket Massachusetts Department of Transportation 10 Park Plaza, Suite 4160 Boston, MA 02116 Phone: 857-368-9042 Cell: 617-620-7326 Email: [email protected] -----Original Message----- From: Perry, Mary-Joe (DOT) Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2014 5:26 PM To: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; Thomas, Anthony (POL); [email protected] Cc: Raposo, John (DOT); Cassidy, Kevin (DOT); Dailey, Donny (DOT); Verseckes, Michael (DOT); Schlenker, Andrew (DOT); DePaola, Frank (DOT); Haznar, Pamela (DOT); Lavoie, Michelle (DOT); Morris, Kerry C. (DOT); [email protected] ; srohrbach@senatordanwolf ; Smith, Dorothy M (HOU) Subject: RE: Route 6 tree clearing meeting Good Evening, MassDOT District 5 would like to thank the Cape Cod Delegation for taking the time to meet this morning to discuss the ongoing clearing work as part of the Mid Cape Highway RT 6 resurfacing project. Following the meeting, a site visit was conducted to define the remaining work locations and what can be expected related to clearing and thinning going forward. The proposed tree work must be completed prior to the final paving to prevent damage of the new roadway surface so it’s extremely important that the contractor be allowed to resume operations as quickly as possible. In order to complete this work in the current Cape Cod Construction season, the locations and tree clearing/trimming treatments are outlined below. • Sagamore Bridge to Exit #2 – Areas protected by guardrail on both sides of the median will receive a selected cut which is defined as follows: All dead and diseased trees will be removed and the stumps cut, brush directly behind or protruding over the guardrail will be removed, tree branches extending over the roadway will be trimmed, all other brush or trees will remain. MassDOT will seek the assistance of a certified arborist to aid our staff in determining what trees will require removal. • Sagamore Bridge to Exit #2 – Areas unprotected by guardrail will be cut according to AASHTO Design Standards for 25ft Clear Zone cutting • Exit #2 to Sandwich/Barnstable Town Line – In areas where the vegetation has been completely removed the contractor will cut back the stumps to within two inches of the ground, in those areas where the cutting went beyond 25ft MassDOT’ S Landscape Section and our contractor will investigate and develop a Restoration Plan. All remaining trees at the clearing limits will be trimmed per standard nursery practices. • Between Exit #4 and #3 westbound, MassDOT will delineate the remaining work to ensure the contractor has clear direction on what work remains to be completed per design standards. The District will be meeting with our contractor in the next few days to coordinate engaging an arborist to outline the work going forward and to begin discussions on the Restoration Plan. It is anticipated that clearing operations will resume shortly. Once a draft Restoration Plan has been developed the district will schedule a meeting with the delegation. The District will be in contact with your office on coordinating the next Cape Cod Delegation meeting over the next few weeks. Best Regards, Mary-Joe Perry District 5 Highway Director, Mass Department of Transportation 1000 County Street Taunton Mass 02780
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 13:49:55 +0000
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