Route 6 in Sandwich
SANDWICH – The state Department of Transportation has put forward a plan to replant trees in the Route 6 median in Sandwich.
The issue was controversial last fall when work crews clear cut parts of the median. Residents argued the cutting made the road more dangerous because cars could cross the median without the trees acting as a barrier between the eastbound and westbound sides of the highway.
Centerville resident Lawrence Barros, 32, was killed after a car crossed the Route 6 median near Chase Road in November. Michael Dalto, 45, of East Bridgewater, is facing charges in connection with that crash. He pleaded not guilty to motor vehicle homicide.
The state said the aggressive clearing was a mistake and said they will replant trees and vegetation in an areas where the clearing should not have taken place.
The majority of the tree removal took place between exits 2 and 4 on the highway, but according to plans released by MassDOT, the replanting area only includes a little over a mile in the area of exits 2 and 3.
“On the map that they drew just a short distance east of exit 3 is marked for replanting and the rest of the area going down to exit 4, which is probably close to a mile and a half, is outside of the ‘overcut area,'” said State Representative Randy Hunt (R-Sandwich), who said he believes the replanting plan doesn’t go far enough.
The project will be paid for by the contractor; the state said in October that the contractor was responsible for the overcutting. “The taxpayers should not be on the hook for paying for this,” Hunt said.
