Marshwood High School sits on a particularly busy stretch of Route 236 in South Berwick. During the past couple of years a number of new businesses have opened directly across from the high school, and just in the past year these businesses have become quite popular and are really increasing traffic flow in the area. This has taken what was already a dangerous intersection, and made it an extremely dangerous intersection. 

The section of 236 where the high school is located is particularly troubling. It is like a highway with a speed limit of 55, but of course many drivers are going faster than that. Currently, there is very little indication that this is a school zone. There is a small stretch of road directly in front of the high school that has blinking lights during school hours. By all accounts, these lights are generally ignored by the traffic speeding in both directions. This is a school zone for schools on both sides, with the high school on the southern side and a daycare across the street. 

During the past year, the bakery and gym on Punkintown Road have become popular with students. Groups of students now run across this busy throughway at all hours of the day and evening. It is truly equivalent to crossing a busy highway on foot. During school hours this section is meant to be 15 mph but few people adhere to that. Outside of school hours both the high school and the businesses across the street are very busy. Turning into rush hour traffic from either side is almost impossible. A new turning lane has also created a very unsafe scenario where a southbound car wanting to turn into the Punkintown businesses and a northbound car wanting to turn left into the high school come face to face and neither can see past the other to make their turn. The first to risk the turn risks a head-on with the oncoming traffic. Add to all of this that many of the drivers negotiating this crazy intersection are 15 and 16 years old… It is truly a dangerous situation.

Here is what we believe would make this intersection safer: 

• First, traffic lights with a green arrow for turning into the high school, and into the businesses across the street.
• Second, lighting this stretch of road at night. There is just as much traffic attending after school events in the dark as during the school day. 
• Third, a crosswalk with a walk signal and blinking lights to alert oncoming traffic.
• Finally, a longer stretch of 236 designated as a school zone for the schools on both sides of Route 236.