1st Action

The first "test " site for this campaign is where Centre St becomes Winchester St, right under the Rt. 9 bridge. That intersection has always felt crazy dangerous on my bike so I looked up the crash statistics to see if it fell under the criteria I am using to define which intersections to target. (This data was sourced from MassDOT, available here.) Wherever 3+ crashes and at least 1 incapacitating crash have occurred is where the pallet signs will be stationed. This intersection has experienced exactly that between 2010-2020.

This all started when I found a pallet leaning on a tree the other day. At first I drove past before realizing it could solve a dilemma I was having. My original sign campaign idea was on hold while I worked out some kinks with the print shop and I wasn't in a rush to get the signs printed. I realized looking at that pallet, that my lax attitude was because I wanted a bigger impact.

The signs I was ordering from the print shop were street-type signs. They could easily blend in with the array of "speed limit" and "one way" signs already on the road, which was the point by design. However, there was so much more to say. This campaign wasn't meant to blend in with the urban landscape. It was supposed to wake people up to an awareness (and crisis!) that is not being addressed.

This discarded pallet opened my mind to a new possibility. Why not go big? The issue certainly is--why not have a sign to match? So I reversed my car and stuffed the pallet into my back seat. Back home I foraged the basement for any black and white spray paint cans I could find. I found a couple and set up a spraying station outside. I used two cans of white to cover the wooden frame before adding on the lettering.

I made my own stencils by blowing up the original sign designed by the print shop and tacked each letter to the pallet. Next was the black paint.

And Voila!

So that's some background on the first action of DIY Newton. We'll see how long the city lets the sign stay up. They would be remiss to remove it and do nothing in its absence...