Last modified: Sunday, July 29, 2007 11:29 PM EDT Heavy equipment works at the site of Patriot Place in Foxboro. Norfolk residents expect the traffic on streets near and connecting to the Route 1 to increase. (Staff photo by MARTIN GAVIN) Norfolk frets over Patriot Place traffic BY STEPHEN PETERSON SUN CHRONICLE STAFF NORFOLK - Residents and town officials are fretting about potential traffic problems arising from the Patriot Place commercial development going up at Gillette Stadium in neighboring Foxboro. Many motorists traveling south from the Foxboro and Walpole area already head through part of Norfolk at times to avoid traffic signals on Route 1. That is expected to increase with the Foxboro complex. "Everett Street and Route 115 will be most affected, and maybe (Route) 1A," Selectmen Chairman Jonathan Smith said. "There will be more people coming up 1A from Wrentham." Residents of Everett Street, a narrow, winding road that runs across Route 115 and is parallel to routes 1 and 1A in the Pondville area, have been particularly inconvenienced by the cut through traffic over the years. The shortcut is used when there are football games or other big events at Gillette that tie up Route 1 traffic. Once the restaurants, stores, offices, cinema and hotel are built at Patriot Place, Everett Street residents say they will get the traffic year round. Everett Street also runs into Wrentham, and becomes Summer Street in Walpole, meaning those towns will also be affected by the Foxboro development. According to a transportation study, traffic is projected to jump 143 percent on Everett. An average of 1,050 vehicles use the street on a typical Sunday, but that leaps to 2,552 vehicles during Patriots game days, a number expected daily when Patriot Place opens. About 30 residents of Everett Street and Valley Street, which links routes 115 and 1A, turned out at a special meeting this past week to address the concerns. All three selectmen, Public Works Director Remo "Butch" Vito Jr., Police Chief Charles Stone and Town Administrator Jack Hathaway were also present. Over a dozen suggestions were mentioned, including police cracking down on speeders. A sign that flashes the speed limit was set up on Everett Thursday, police are patrolling the area more often, and a traffic study will be done in September. "There was some action," said Richard Connors, an Everett Street resident leading the neighbors. Other steps planned are to square off the intersection of Valley with Route 115, and clear brush at the intersection of Everett and Route 115. Additional suggestions include installing sidewalks and installing "No Through Truck Traffic" signs. Once construction trucks stop, there will be delivery trucks, residents fear. "It is moving along at a fast pace," Connors said of Patriot Place. "We are not against Patriot Place. We don't want traffic on our rural street." There are about three accidents a year on the street. "It is a very dangerous street for walkers and bikes," Connors said. "Game day, forget it. It is thousands of cars. "We put up with it during game times and other times," he added. "Now it is going to be a constant thing. We must do something to protect ourselves."