For Immediate Release

Contact Information
Helen Zoellner
Public Relations Manager
hzoellner@cityhall.bm
441-292-1234 ext.204

City Seeks Public Feedback for Proposed City Improvement Project

Hamilton – March 11, 2024

The City of Hamilton has plans to embark on a major City Improvement Project at the junction of Queen Street and Church Street and is seeking feedback through an upcoming public consultation.

Proposed changes will improve traffic flow and public safety, enhance the pedestrian experience, encourage City events, assist in deterring antisocial behaviour, add visual appeal, and upgrade the overall public experience of Hamilton.

“The traffic light system at the junction of Church Street and Queen Street is almost four decades old and needs to be replaced,” explained City Engineer Patrick Cooper. “Our current system is dated and is unable to integrate with the new equipment being installed across the rest of the City to allow for smoother, safer and smarter traffic flow. We don’t want to simply put a Band-Aid on a significant problem, essentially kicking the can down the road. It’s about being proactive with our aging infrastructure.”

The City plans to install a SCOOT system of traffic control at the junction. SCOOT (which stands for ‘Split Cycle and Offset Optimisation Technique’) is currently used in over 350 towns and cities around the world and uses live data from vehicle detectors to quickly adjust traffic signal settings to dramatically reduce vehicle delays and ensure road users’ time is optimised.

“Upgrades will require major works such as trenching, sidewalk reconfiguration and the installation of underground conduits and cables,” said Mr. Cooper. “The City has decided to take this opportunity to redesign and improve the surrounding pedestrian space and upgrade the overall public experience of Hamilton. Part of the Department of Planning’s newly produced City Plan is about enhancing the pedestrian landscape and we are supporting and embracing those principals with this traffic intersection design proposal.”

The proposed project’s enhancements include:

• Improving lines of sight for pedestrians and motorists;
• Installation of more City trees;
• Creation of additional green spaces;
• Redesign of taxi ranks, pedestrian crossings, sidewalks and street parking;
• Improvements to the turning exit at the bus depot;
• Landscaping and expansion of Freedom Square;
• The relocation of the ‘When Voices Rise’ sculpture to a place of greater prominence;
• The installation of new pedestrian shaded shelters and increased street seating and planters;
• And significant landscaping at the Par-la-Ville car park entrance.

“Hamilton is the heart of Bermuda, and this project impacts us all,” said Mr. Cooper. “It’s vitally important to conduct a grassroots level of consultation because there may be things that weren’t accounted for in the plans – a different perspective, cultural sensitivity or practical observation.

“While the biggest impetus for us is improved public safety through better traffic management, a bonus coming out of this project is urban placemaking. We want to ensure we are doing the best we can for that area from an urban design perspective. We have a unique opportunity to really examine what is working and perhaps what isn’t working. What we want to end up with is a plan which combines intelligent traffic management with considered design solutions that really pulls technology and urban design together.”

The City has already had initial consultations with Government entities which have proved fruitful and supportive of the proposed plans. The City is proposing a progressive implementation of the works to minimize traffic disruptions.

The City is encouraging the public to visit our project information booth at Pier 6 from 11am until 2pm on Thursday, March 14^th to learn more about the project and provide feedback.

The public can also view plans at www.cityofhamilton.bm (under ‘Stakeholder Information’) and provide feedback throughout the month of March by emailing consultation@cityhall.bm. 

You can watch a video of the proposed works here.

Rendering of proposed works