Ellie Park, Multimedia Managing Editor

As New Haven’s Tweed Airport seeks to expand following increasing air service from Avelo Airways and Breeze Airways, local residents are pointing out issues of traffic congestion and illegal parking.

Tweed Airport’s placement within the East Shore community means that travellers have to drive through residential communities to get to and from the airport. The entrance of the airport sits at the intersection of Fort Hale Road and Burr Street, home to many New Haven residents. Many of these residents have complaints regarding the increased car traffic, illegal parking and idling vehicles waiting to pick up airport passengers.

“They need to do more traffic enforcement,” Gloria Bellacicco, a local resident with concerns about airport expansion, said. Bellacicco complained about the lack of vehicle tagging and towing along Burr Street, where she claims vehicles are instead marked as parked for the airport and left alone. 

Joe Giordano, an East Haven resident who supports airport expansion, pointed out that “1,200 to 1,400 passengers converge every morning down Fort Hale Road for the early morning flights,” which he said strains the infrastructure at the airport and stresses travelers.

Sergeant Christopher Alvarado of the New Haven Police Department acknowledged these issues, noting that major congestion issues are mainly caused by flight delays, resulting in an influx of passengers that cause an unexpected rush hour. He announced that the NHPD has allocated another officer to work the perimeter of Tweed Airport, which could help alleviate these issues. 

Additionally, Alvarado clarified that while the NHPD “is more proactive, [the Traffic and Parking Department] is more reactive,” stating that residents should call in reports of disruptive vehicles to have them properly dealt with.

Thomas Cavaliere, director of community engagement at Tweed Airport, mentioned that the worst traffic issues were over the past holiday season, when flights were separated by mere 15-minute blocks. 

“Starting on March 3, to spread that out, instead of every 15 minutes, we’re now looking at 25-30 minutes.” 

Cavaliere says that this move should help alleviate congestion.

Cavaliere also announced that the city government and city engineer have developed a new traffic pattern for use at the airport, which they plan to construct by the end of the spring. While the plan has not been finalized, it currently involves the construction of a second exit and a roundabout at the intersection of Dean and Burr Streets. This means that cars for departing flights will still use Fort Hale Road, but cars leaving the airport will drive down Burr Street to the end of the road, and then take a right onto Townsend Avenue. The plan is forecasted to decrease traffic on Fort Hale Road by 30 percent.

City Engineer Giovanni Zinn, in a public meeting regarding the plan, stated that the traffic along Fort Hale Road has prevented residents from leaving their driveways. The narrow two-lane residential road makes it easy for residual traffic to spill out into the surrounding neighborhood. He believes that the reduction in “pinch points” — intersections handling more car traffic than originally designed for — leading to the airport will significantly improve traffic flow. 

Bellacicco expressed concern over this plan of action. 

“I really have an issue with sending all the cars out of the airport past a grammar school, a senior center, a church and a food pantry,” she said. These facilities are along the affected section of Townsend Avenue. Bellacicco highlighted how many students at Nathan Hale School are being picked up by parents, some of whom have to walk across the busy street to pick up their children.

Bellacicco also thinks that the lack of a traffic light at the proposed Townsend Avenue and Burr Street intersection leading out of the airport could lead to issues. With the intersection of Fort Hale Road and Townsend Avenue having a traffic light, she believes that diverting cars onto more roads in the community would worsen the congestion situation overall.

“Having a second exit to the airport is a temporary thing until the bulk of the traffic moves to the east side of the airport,” Zinn responded, referring to the relocation of terminal facilities to a new connecting road off of the nonresidential Proto Drive. 

Andrew King, spokesperson for Avports, the current operator of Tweed Airport, also believes that the airport can help financially support an effort to have a consistent crossing guard stationed outside of the Nathan Hale School.

Carolyn Roskowski, a resident who lives on Fort Hale Road, believes that the traffic flow by the school should be studied more by the city. 

“I’ve seen those lineups every morning and afternoon, and I think that’s something that bears more consideration, especially since we’re talking about kids and their parents,” she said.

A second public meeting is currently in the works. However, it is unclear when it will be arranged. 

The Board of the Tweed Airport Authority is set to convene again on March 21.