First, drivers currently have to travel too far and around the block to reach their destinations instead of having a straight shot, Buchanan said. Plus, she said, all three parking structures are located on one-way streets downtown.

“It’s better for tourists who are coming downtown and don’t know how to get around,” Buchanan said.

The change also would be better for pedestrians since it slows everyone down, she said. Currently, Main Street in the evening is like “a racetrack.”

At stakeholder meetings, many people supported the idea, but some residents who live on the east end of Front Street had questions about the reasons for the change.

The study will examine Front and Main streets from Orange Street to Madison Street, and HDR eventually will present traffic models that show different approaches to the conversion. Buchanan said one obvious challenge is the way the intersections will work at Madison, and on the other side, one likely outcome is a consolidation of signals at Orange, Front and Main.

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Todd Frank, who owns a business on Front Street, said he was skeptical about the idea at first, but he’s come to be a fan.