BUSINESS BUZZ
By Steven Froias
artially designed to alleviate the traffic that clogged South End streets at quitting time, many of the mills and manufacturers in that area of New Bedford had shuttered or substantially reduced their workforce by the time work was completed. The traffic problem had largely “solved” itself. In the decades since then, Route 18 has been a roadway of derision in the city. Many regard it as a scar across the landscape which separated it from the waterfront, destroyed the fabric of community and literally ran over too much of New Bedford’s architectural heritage in the process of its creation. And that’s largely been the perception of Route 18 ever since – an urban evil to be borne but never embraced. Yet generations later, with a renewed focus on neighborhood health throughout the city, a nascent wind-energy industry centered just off the highway at the New Bedford Marine Commerce
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Terminal, and a still-thriving fishing industry for which transportation is critical, is it time to finally love Route 18?
April 2021 | The South Coast Insider
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) thinks so. In fact, they are in the process of gathering public input for a reimagining of the roadway from Elm Street north to Coggeshall Street. And, this follows some major improvements already accomplished south of that stretch of road. Consider this when thinking about Route 18 today: The redesign at the foot of Union Street has worked. Balancing the needs of industry, recreation and tourism was no easy task. However, the redesign of Route 18 centered at the foot of Union Street and reaching down to Walnut Street and up to Elm Street has been a significant improvement. An abysmal situation has been made manageable for both vehicular and foot traffic. Is it perfect? Of course not. Then again, few such congested urban areas seldom are anywhere.
