Nantucket Transportation

Congestion

Bridgette Murphy II PIN 2023

August 10, 2023

Transportation, Housing, and Congestion

1900s Tom Nevers Lodge, gathered for the auction of land lots.

The charm of Nantucket has been attracting visitors for centuries. In this photo we see a crowd out in front of the 1900s Tom Nevers Lodge, gathered for the auction of land lots in Tom Nevers. That very same desire of the early 1900s to live on Nantucket has drawn people from all over the world to the island today.

Currently there are 14,000 people living year-round in Nantucket. In the Summer months, the island population can reach monthly averages of 40,000 people.

This growth in population and surge of tourists mean there is more demand for housing and more of a demand on our roads and transportation. How we plan for the future growth of Nantucket will then determine how the community functions.

Congestion on Nantucket isn't a new problem

Despite being just 14 miles, Nantucket has always had transportation challenges and congestion.

Nantucket newspaper articles discussing the controversy and frustration of traffic congestion

How did Nantucket traffic get so bad?

From Wampanog footrails to sandy Quaker roads, Nantucket streets have historically came about from necessity of travel between settled areas and town.

The three periods of significance in Nantucket history of transportation: Foot trails, Official Designations, and Modern planning.

Pre 1600s

Wampanog paths and foot trails

1799

First official street assessment for President John Adams. Assessed by Isaac Coffin.

1820

Thomas Mitchel live stock fences and road maps

1846

Common Wealth of streets officially designated

1975

Development boom and public right of ways to harbors and shores

2023

Growing vehicle congestion & Long Range Transportation updates

What would it have been like to get around historically?

Main methods of transportation on the island across the decades.

Current Efforts - Town of Nantucket

Modern day planning and transportation is done on Nantucket through the town Planning and Land Use offices (PLUS)

The Long range transportation plan is a federally required plan for the next 20 years of transportation. It is updated every 4 years. This plan focuses on 5 categories: Accessibility, Sensitivity to the island, Affordability, Improvement to safety, Improvement to reliability.

"This plan is Federally Required and Fiscally Restrained" -Long Range Transportation Plan Draft, 2023

Fiscal Constraints

Outstanding Plans

The LRTP includes the outstanding street projects and pedestrian focused projects for the next 20 years. However, nearly all of these currently hold a status of D E or F. The Status does not relate to the plans quality, but rather where it is in relation to completion. Most projects are either unfunded, not yet initiated, or not yet accepted by MassDOT. This leads to road repair delays and growing traffic problems.

So it begs the question, why are there so many projects that haven’t even been funded or initiated yet?

Property Tax

The amount of money being funded into public infrastructure is low. Only 30% of the island total land area is paying a residential property tax because 60% of the island is in conservation and therefore exempt. That means the majority of the money is lost due to undevelopable lands.

Additionally, the regional transit authority does not receive federal formula funds and therefor relies on 5311 Rural Grant Funds to be their main source of federal funding. And perhaps harshest of all,

The overall cost of existing infrastructure repair was increased 809% since the last update to the Long Range Transportation Plan 4 Years ago in 2018, due to the now extra 35 miles of needed roadway infrastructure. The cost has jumped from 5.5 million to 50 million.

Nantucket Population

As mentioned, the island has a current population of 14,000 year round but is projected to grow to 20,000 year round by 2050. In more recent years the Richmond Housing development and the Surfside Crossing Development are expected to add over 200 housing units. Many of which will likely be a working house hold.

Nantucket Employment

As the new housing becomes available both around the island and in these subdivisions, that growing year round population will need to get to work, school, or groceries each day, more then likely by driving a car.

This means that as the working population grows so will the daily congestion and traffic flows. We could end up seeing high levels of congestion not just in the summer months, but throughout the whole year.

Locating Congestion

Most Congested Streets

Old South Road
Surfside Road
Milestone Road

Most Congested Intersections/ areas

Nobaddeer Farm Road
Stop and Shop rotaries
Five Points
Downtown

Downtown Congestion

The Congestion in the downtown is significantly slower then elsewhere as can be seen in the red traffic flows.

In part due to the short, and narrow streets with tight turns and slow travel speeds.

Knowing this where congestion is, how do we move forward?

PIN Project

Redesigning streets can be a slow and methodological processes and must utilize a combination of short term and long term solutions. Therefore this next section is broken into both short term and long term solutions. A short term project can be accomplished in 6 months to 3 years while a longer term project would be part of a 20+ year investment and designed master plan.

Short Term Solutions

Turning Lanes and Medians

Seen here is the intersection just outside the Richmond Subdivision. This section of Old South Road is relevant and proof that a functional complete streets can be done in Nantucket, while maintaining the small town feel.

A complete street is a transportation corridor that is equally balances for traffic flow, cars, and pedestrians. By having the designated turning lanes, grassed medians, and bike paths, this area is accessible and safe.

Milestone Road & Monomy Road - Complete Street

Keeping with that idea of adding in more turning lanes, I chose this intersection just after going east through the rotary towards Sconset. The LRTP has a planned roundabout at the milestone and Polpis intersection, though it is currently holding an F status, meaning it is unfunded. But I think here would be good as well to service the neighborhoods north along Monomoy road and to stop traffic from backing up into the roundabout by stop and shop which creates congestion within the roundabouts. The turning lanes would allow traffic to pass by and not stop as seen in my draw up here.

Surfside Crossing

These short term solutions of medians, turning lanes or roundabouts, may seem trivial, but how the work as part of a larger scale matters. Selected below is the planned development of surfside crossing (circled in red) which is expecting to add 156 units. As seen in the highlighted intersections, currently it is nearly impossible to travel north into town without running into congestion.

New development such as this needs to be strategically located or else they can overwhelm the road ways. The best of attempt of regulating this type of traffic and density development is through means of policy.

Policy

Policy must work in tangent with physical engineering to accomplish the goal. Many year round residents are ready for a change when it comes to congestion. An overwhelming majority of the 659 respondent of the LRTP’s survey support Vehicle limitations.

The top 3 most supported strategies are Allocating or prioritizing spots on the ferry for year round residents, issuing a limited number of yearly permits, and restricting vehicles from certain public streets.

Long Term Solutions

For a longer term plan it would need to be something sustainable, and so lets consider what we know:

Nantucket’s population is growing at a rate of about 1,700 people a year.
There is currently new large scale subdivision planned with likely more to come.
Year round there is going to be a higher demand on transportation.
Congestion on the island will get worse as the daily volumes increase in the off season

It quickly becomes a question of how can we move enough people around the island, without adding more cars to the road?

Nantucket has the perfect opportunity to make use of a Narrow Gauge Railroad

Example of a Narrow Gauge Railroad, The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum

View of Nantucket Harbor looking over Easy Street, 1915, NHA

Nantucket's Historic Railroad

Innovative and a needed way of moving people around the island without a car, its also historically accurate in Nantucket.

Nantucket's rail line ran from 1881-1917 and was in fact a narrow gauge rail line.

The Nantucket Railroad to be "Junked", 1917, The Inquirer and Mirror

Shown in the newspaper clipping from the 1917 Inquirer and Mirror, part of the reason the rail line was “junked” was in part due to the worth of iron in the 1910s.

The other main reason was due the expectation of the 10 year ban on cars ending and being back allowed on the island in 1918... just one year after the rail road was destroyed.

During the summer months, the Nantucket rail line had been preforming well. A daily service between town and 'Sconset, for a total of five round trips a day.

Location of what was once the rail line in Modern day Nantucket Town, which is now known as Easy Street. (Left 2023) (Right 1880s)

The Two Rail lines of the Nantucket Railroad

Historic Rail Lines

Historically those rail lines had two routes during different time periods between 1881-1917, but for the purpose of the project selecting one or even just a portion of these rail lines could have a significant impact

Example of a Narrow Gauge Railroad passenger experience, The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum

Conclusion

Post Card of Lower Main Street with Its Famous Cobblestones, Nantucket, Massachusetts, 1940s, NHA

In conclusion, there are many long term and short term solutions that can be done to help fix this issue of congestion and transportation.

The island is feeling the growing pains of its new development in its roadways and its finally time to start building for a community of 14,000 people, and soon to be 20,000.

The best solutions are always a combination of short and long term solutions and the town of Nantucket’s Transportation planners do what they can with the fiscal limitation that they have.

Nantucket is a place with a strong emphasis of progression through the preservation of its past and I think finding the solution to congestion will be done through just that.