Louis Tretakoff of Massasoit Rd. presented the petition to selectmen Monday night. He said it took him just three weekends to gather that many signatures.

“This was the easiest job I ever had to do,” said Tretakoff. “People were standing in line to sign the petition.”

“It is the busiest intersection in town,” Tretakoff said, adding that he has seen back-ups of as many as 17 cars waiting to get through the intersection and has witnessed two accidents there in the last month.

Tretakoff wanted selectmen to put this intersection at the top of the list of intersections they send to the state on its TIPs list, or Transportation Improvement Plan list. The TIPs list makes the road projects eligible for federal funding.

Selectmen said they had already sent in their recommendations for the TIPs list, which included the Tremont St., Tobey Garden and Chestnut St. intersection as well as two other dangerous intersections: Winter St. and Route 53, and Route 3A, Oak and Park streets.

Selectmen said they could not only recommend the Tremont St., Tobey Garden and Chestnut St. intersection because if an intersection were not on the list then it definitely would not be considered for improvement. Currently the state is considering installing a traffic light at the Winter St. and Route 53 intersection as part of a Route 53 improvement study.

Because Tremont St./Route 3A, is a state road, the town must wait for state action before any improvements can take place there.

Selectman Andre Martecchini said selectmen should meet with the highway safety committee and a representative from MassHighway, the state agency in charge of road projects, to discuss the town’s priorities including the Tremont St., Tobey Garden andChestnut St. intersection.

He also recommended that Duxbury fund the cost of designing a solution to the problematic intersection, also known as Bailey’s Corner.

Tretakoff said it made sense to redesign the Tremont St., Tobey Garden and Chestnut St. intersection because the state planned to repave Route 3A next year and because the town plans to lay a new water main before the repaving. Voters at town meeting in March will have their say in whether or not to fund the design phase of the water main project.

In other business, selectmen:

*Learned from Town Manager Rocco Longo that the town has received a very low interest rate of 1.1466% on its loan of $43,511,000 for the school building project. The low bidder for interest on this loan was Sovereign Bank. The town must temporarily borrow this money until it receives its 67% reimbursement from the state school building assistance program. This is the second year that Duxbury will temporarily borrow for this project. Last year’s interest rate was higher, 1.88%. The school building assistance program will pay back the costs of the temporary borrowing, said Longo.

*Voted to sign a letter to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency detailing the town’s concern on eight issues not addressed in the nuclear disaster emergency plan filed with the state this month.

*Did not receive Longo’s FY05 budget update because it was not yet ready. Longo said he has been working with all town department heads to modify the budget, which is 4.5% less than last year.

*Appointed Maxene Armour of the Finance Committee, Jim Merlin of the Fiscal Advisory Committee and high school student Mark Herman to the Wright Building Study Committee.

*Appointed Barbara Kelley to the Conservation Commission for a term to expire in June 2006. Kelly fills a vacancy created by the resignation of Anne Hill.

*Met in executive session to discus pending litigation. Selectmen Chairman Betsy Sullivan and Selectmen Andre Martecchini attended the meeting, which began at 7 pm and lasted 40 minutes. Also in attendance were Police Chief Mark DeLuca and Town Counsel Robert Troy. Selectman John Tuffy was not at Monday night’s meeting.