Three-Foot Copper Spire Will Top Concrete Traffic Pagoda in Square

A brand new, $3,600 steel and concrete traffic box, topped off by a three-foot copper spindle will rise on the Square within three weeks, weather permitting.

Some much needed changes in the Quincy Square rotary outside Lamont Library are also under consideration, City Manager John B. Atkinson said yesterday. The Cambridge Traffic Department may add three "delta" traffic islands to prevent short cuts across the intersection.

The new control box, now under construction behind a wooden barricade at the corner of Boylston Street and Massachusetts Avenue, will have a six-foot square concrete base, four wide plate-glass windows, a copper covered roof, and aluminite and stainless steel trimming, including its bright copper spindle, the new box will tower almost 18 feet above the Square.

Plans for a new traffic box in the Square have been under way for several months. The old wooden box outside the Coop, with its small windows and poor location, cannot handle Square traffic. It has also been a frequent target for hit-and-run drivers.

The replacement will have a commanding view down all roads leading to and from the Square; and its concrete base, sunk four feet below the sidewalk, will make it less vulnerable to passing cars.