Town aims to keep Moscow a village, not a shortcut

The road has over the years, to many residents’ dismay, become the go-to spot for people heading to and from Stowe Mountain Resort and the Mountain Road shops, hotels and eateries, while bypassing Stowe village. The state doesn’t do much to try and convince people otherwise — there’s a sign for Interstate 89 pointing Mountain Road drivers straight through Moscow.

Now, the town is looking at engineering options to make improvements to Moscow Road that will involve resurfacing the town highway and reconfiguring what many see as a dangerous intersection at River Road.

Consultants Hoyle Tanner presented the town with three options of varying complexity and price tags.

• A low-build option consisting of a mill, shim and overlay pave job of the existing road, keeping the road width the same but adding traffic calming infrastructure at both ends of Moscow village, which is roughly contained within the 25-mph zone along Moscow Road. That option is estimated at $650,000.

• A medium build would do all that plus widen the road by at least four feet and add paved pedestrian and cyclist-friendly shoulders between two and four feet. It would also turn the Y-shaped intersection at Moscow and River roads into a proper T-shaped one. That option would cost roughly $3.1 million.

• On the high end, a third option, estimated at $4.6 million, would do all of that plus improve curbs and drainage, add lighting and street trees along the entire village length, with additional green space at the village entryways.

The selectboard last week, after discussion with residents, leaned toward cherry picking from the different options, without yet committing to anything.

The T-shaped idea was quite popular among those in attendance, as were the village entryway improvements. However, there was concern about widening the road to include the bike lanes, because that might create a sense that one can drive even faster.

The consultants say they plan to have a final study finished in mid-April.

Speeding through Moscow has long been the bane of those who live there.

There’s even a movement afoot in recent years to enact a sort of local control, led by the “Collectors,” a small group of people who have decided to drive at exactly the speed limit on Moscow Road, forcing everyone behind them to do the same.

A few years ago, when the Collector movement began, a lively back-and-forth ensued as people debated the merits of passing on the right and using cruise control at 25 mph, whether there are enough police patrols in that area, and whether it’s even possible to drive so slowly without riding the brakes the whole time.

Wendy Behrend told the newspaper in 2019 that there’s a genuine rush from feeling like you’re doing something wrong by fastidiously going exactly the speed limit. That’s because so many people get annoyed with actually having to go the speed limit that they can get borderline road rage.

“That’s the most amusing part,” she said. “I do feel mischievous, and I do feel like I have power.”