10 Most Dangerous Intersections In Pittsfield

By Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
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The intersection of Dalton Avenue and Cheshire Road is the ninth most dangerous intersection in Pittsfield.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield has the most dangerous intersections in the county, according to the state Department of Transportation.

MassDOT released its strategic highway safety plan this month with the aim to reduce fatalities and serious injuries by 20 percent, and by 50 percent by 2030.

The state has pored over crash data from 2008 to 2010 and has listed the county's worst intersections to prioritize with improvements.

Statewide, the characteristics of fatal crashes include 51 percent of vehicle occupants did not use a seat belt; 48 percent involved crossing lane lines; 29 percent involved drunken driving; 28 percent involved speeding; 23 percent were at intersections; 16 percent involved young drivers; 17 percent  involved pedestrians; 13 percent involved motorcycles; 13 percent involved elderly drivers; 5 percent involved commercial trucks, and 1 percent were in work zones.

During the two-year time frame, there were 40 fatalities, 2,308 serious injuries and 11,668 damaged vehicles in Berkshire County.


While the data is regarded as incomplete by county planners, the state's information shows that the majority of crashes happen in the city.  The intersections aren't ranked by the number of crashes but rather the amount of damage caused by them.

Below are the top 10 most dangerous intersections in the county:

No. 10: Dalton Avenue and Merrill Road
This intersection, also at Allendale, saw 24 crashes that caused significant damage; six included injuries.

No. 9: Dalton Avenue and Cheshire Road This intersection might be considered the same as Merrill Road, but this section has seen 19 accidents with seven of them causing injury.

No. 8: East Street and Second Street This intersection between the one-lane Second Street and the multilane East Street had 17 crashes, eight of which caused injury.

No. 7: Berkshire Crossing With the shopping plaza, Wendys and whole lot of traffic converging, Berkshire Crossing has seen 15 accidents with 10 causing serious injury.
No. 6: Fenn and First Streets This busy intersection near City Hall has low visibility. Drivers should take extra caution when turning here because there have been 20 crashes, with nine of them causing injury.

No. 5: South Street and West Housatonic Street
Right near Park Square, this intersection leading out of town toward the MassPike or onto Route 20 toward New York sees heavy traffic and has been the location of 36 crashes with seven of them causing serious injury.

No. 4: North Street and Linden Street
The only intersection in the top 10 to have a recorded fatality in the two-year time frame, this intersection has seen 24 total crashes, nine causing injury and the one fatality.

No.3: Dalton Avenue and Benedict Road
If there is an accident here, it causes injury. This intersection has seen 15 accidents and all of them involving serious injuries.

No. 2: Tyler Street and First Street
At least if there is an accident here, those injuried don't have far to go to get to Berkshire Medical Center. Unfortunately, 15 people had to take that trip out of only 17 crashes.

No. 1: Linden Street and Center Street
This is the only intersection in the county to make the top 200 most dangerous intersections in the state but county officials say it would toward the top if the traffic volume was similar to those in the east end of the state. This intersection has seen 20 crashes causing damage and 16 injuries.

 


Tags: accident,   intersection,   MassDOT,   motor vehicle accident,   rankings,   

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Lenco Celebrates $5M in Capital Investments

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

Executive Vice President Lenny Light says it's not the equipment but the staff that gives Lenco its competitive advantage. 
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Lenco Armored Vehicles has embarked on a $5 million capital investment project for faster, better manufacturing. 
 
A ribbon was cut on Monday in front of the company's new Trumpf TruLaser 3080, a machine designed to cut extra-large sheets of metal. This will increase the efficiency of building armored tactical vehicles, such as the BearCat, by about 40 percent. 
 
Executive Vice President Lenny Light recalled the Lenco's beginnings in 1981, when it operated out of 3,000 square feet on Merrill Road with 15 employees.  Today, Lenco has 170,000 square feet of manufacturing space and nearly 150 employees. 
 
"The work that we do here in Pittsfield contributes to millions of dollars being put back into our local economy. We're the largest commercial armored rescue vehicle manufacturer in the United States. We're one of the most respected brands locally. We also now own the largest fiber laser in the United States. It's the only one of its kind in the Northeast," he said, motioning to the massive, modern machinery. 
 
"But the equipment that we have is not our competitive advantage — our welders, our forklifts, our cranes — any company can buy this same exact equipment." 
 
Rather than the equipment, he said, it's the staff who shows up every day with a can-do attitude that gives Lenco its competitive advantage. 
 
Planning for the industrial cutter began 18 months ago, when the company needed to decide if it was the right equipment for the future. Trumpf, named for its founder, is a German-headquartered global manufacturer of high-end metal processing (computer numerical control) machines, including laser technology. The TruLaser 3080 uses a high-intensity laser beam to cut through metals with speed and accuracy.
 
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