HONESDALE, PA — The safety upgrades needed for Honesdale’s Main Street have been enumerated in an engineer’s report accepted by the Honesdale Borough Council on February 24. The report recommends eliminating parking spaces and changing certain streets into exit- or enter-only access points to improve visibility for pedestrians and vehicles.

“This is way long overdue,” said borough councilor James Hamill. The borough has previously identified the need to improve safety on Main Street, with borough officials and the Greater Honesdale Partnership holding a press conference in the summer of 2024 to increase awareness of the current dangerous conditions of the roads. 

The current proximity of parking spots to crosswalks makes it difficult for pedestrians to see oncoming cars, and makes it appear to cars as if pedestrians are just “popping out of nowhere” as they’re trying to cross the street, said Honesdale Mayor Derek Williams. 

Williams said the sight distances—the amount of space visible by a driver—to be achieved in the plan were identified by the borough’s engineer after the council expressed an interest in making safety improvements along Main Street. 

“I think we all know that it’s currently not safe,” he said. “And if you can see further upstream while you’re walking across the street, then that gives you more time to safely cross.”

The engineer’s report identifies a number of options for the borough to improve Main Street sightlines, such as by removing parking spaces. If fully implemented, the report’s recommendations would result in 58 fewer parking spots: 25 fewer on the west side of Main Street, 18 fewer on the east side of Main Street and 15 fewer on the west side of Church Street. 

The report acknowledges that “this would have a significant impact to the area” and “recognize[s] the borough will be sensitive to this.” To that end, the report also provides options for restricting traffic flow in downtown Honesdale that could keep 19 to 25 parking spots and still ensure safe sightlines. 

These include:

• Changing the access points onto Main Street from Torrey Lane, the southern end of Basin Street and two unnamed alleys near Basin Street to be one way/enter only. This would allow the borough to keep 19 to 25 parking spaces.
• Changing the intersections at 12th Street and Church Street, at 9th Street and Main Street, and at 6th Street and Main Street to be one way/enter only. This would allow the borough to keep seven parking spaces. 
• Changing the intersections at 11th Street and Main Street, at 10th Street and Church Street, at 7th Street and Main Street and at 5th Street and Church Street to be one way/enter only. This would allow the borough to keep 10 parking spaces. 

“Fundamentally, what this comes down to is that in order to give the studied intersections safe sight distance, changes must be made,” the report states. 

The report indicates that any changes to the borough’s streets must be further studied, and coordination must be ensured with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, before moving forward. 

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