MONTAGUE — With approval from the Selectboard, Town Planner Maureen Pollock has applied for a $500,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation (MassDOT) to continue progress on measures to address speeding and increase pedestrian safety in Montague Center.

During Monday’s Selectboard meeting, Pollock presented updated project designs. The new designs from VHB, a civil engineering consulting and design firm, were informed by community feedback received during input sessions, conversations with planners at the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG), comments from the Selectboard and residents of Montague Center.

According to Pollock, if the town receives the grant, the $500,000 will support the cost of construction. The proposed designs that were submitted with the grant application, due Oct. 1, were not finalized plans, and further public discussion will be done before a final design is approved.

“If awarded, the town will then have to prepare bid-ready construction documents before we go out to bid. Those bid-ready construction documents will need to be reviewed and approved by the Selectboard, so additional public comment will be sought as part of that,” Pollock said. “We hope to find out in February … so we’ll let the public know if we’re awarded and then what are the next steps. We hope to start construction in the summer or fall.”

During her presentation to the Selectboard, Pollock detailed the proposed improvements, starting from the southern portion of the project area. Raised crosswalks with flashing pedestrian crossing signs, which can help reduce vehicle speeds and provide better visibility when pedestrians are crossing the street, are included in the designs where Main Street intersects with Union Street, and then again where Main Street intersects with Station Street.

The bus shelter outside the Montague Village Store will be moved from its current location in front of the sidewalk to a grassy area, located to the right of the store, to accommodate an on-street parking spot. The new bus shelter will have a bike rack and concrete pad. Another bus stop with the same amenities would be located across the street from the relocated Village Store bus stop. Both the Franklin Regional Transit Authority (FRTA) and the owner of the store approved of these plans.

At the common, the southern end will be extended out to allow pedestrians to cross Main Street and North Street. The northwestern side of the common, where Main Street bears left, will have new raised crosswalks for Main Street and Center Street, with flashing beacons to allow for safer crossing. A raised island would also be installed where lines are currently painted, just past the southernmost tip of the common.

Existing crosswalks at the northern end of North Street by the Montague Common Hall and the eastern portion of Center Street will be updated to meet new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards, and the existing crosswalks at the intersection of Court Square and School Street will be repainted.

Bicycle lanes will be installed on either side of Main Street, and signs advising motorists to allow at least 4 feet when passing bicyclists will be added on Main Street near School Street and Court Square, where the bike lanes going south and north end.

Pollock explained that these improvements within the project area are subject to the $500,000 grant, however, the goal is to continue improvements in Montague Center for traffic calming and pedestrian safety purposes in the future. One of these improvements would be farther north, including the crosswalk on Greenfield Road outside the Montague Bookmill and the crosswalk on Main Street just before Greenfield and Turners Falls roads meet.

After Pollock laid out these new designs, some members of the public commented on the possibility of adding more raised crosswalks to the project area. Pollock noted that the grant amount would only cover what is already included in the proposed designs. Selectboard Chair Richard Kuklewicz suggested one of these raised crosswalks currently designated for the intersection of Station and Union streets could be moved farther north.

Concerns around speeding in Montague Center and across the five villages have been brought to the Selectboard in prior meetings, notably during the Sept. 16 meeting, when Turners Falls resident Shelley Madden spoke about 12 year-old Jaiden Fred being hit by a vehicle in Turners Falls the weekend prior.

A letter to the editor submitted to the Greenfield Recorder by Nicolas Wo, published Sept. 27, detailed these speeding concerns in town.

“As a community, we have the power to advocate for safer roads and protect our children,” Wo writes.

Selectboard Vice Chair Matt Lord expressed his appreciation for this opportunity for more grant funding and summarized the main takeaways from the designs. He pointed to the traffic calming and pedestrian safety measures like bicycle lanes, the common extensions and the North Street raised island.

“To continue to narrow the road there, and that the raised crosswalks will decrease speeds that the motorists are going through,” Lord said, “which I think really is what the village is concerned with.”

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.