Doomed: Old Folks and the 3-Way Stop
Posted by John Lang on June 16, 2009 · 5 Comments
The mayor’s been screaming at the State Highway Administration.
Council Member Mabel Mumford-Pautz is warning that old people are going to die in their cars.
Councilman Gibson Anthony says, “Nobody knows what to do.”
“Doomed,” is Police Chief Robert Edler’s take on the situation.
The target of the town leaders’ anger, outrage, bafflement and frustration is the new three-way stop at the intersection of High, Rt. 20 and the Bypass that caused long traffic jams and near-accidents on it’s first day Monday.
Anthony says he was caught in the clot of traffic and, “As I was sitting there thinking ‘this is dangerous,’ someone blew through the stop sign right in front of me.”
“I called the State Highway Administration and screamed,” said Bailey.
She added that she couldn’t get through to the official she really wanted to (scream at) speak to. But she did get connected with someone who argued with her that SHA did, too, inform the town in advance of the change.
Did not, said the mayor. Did too, said the functionary. Did not, said the mayor. And so on and so forth. “Look, I was THERE,” sputtered Bailey to no avail whatsoever.
Going forth some more, the mayor looked around the Council meeting and asked, was anybody informed? Town Manager Bill Ingersoll shook his head. Chief Edler shook his.
Mumford-Pautz recalled the time when an elderly couple she knew, who hadn’t driven in a long time, were confused by a changed traffic pattern and were killed. And older people like that will be put in the greatest danger, she said, by this new three-way stop.
“It’s going to wipe the rest of the population out,” says Mumford-Pautz.
The “brilliant” State Highway Administration, as the mayor sarcastically called it, will be hearing more in coming days from town fathers, town mothers and (if Mumford-Pautz is right) town orphans.
That three-way stop, says Chief Edler, “It’s doomed.” When he first saw all the cars stacked up there, he says, “I thought I was looking at a funeral procession.”
This new traffic pattern really makes getting out of Flatland Road to drive into Chestertown all the easier, too.
I think the three way stop sign is stupid! It ties up traffic going down Rte. 20 into High Street. I’m not sure why it couldn’t be left the way it was….I never witnessed any difficulty getting into or out of 291!
It’s incredibly confusing. I nearly went through that stop sign the first time I saw it the other day because one is so accustomed to doing familiar things in familiar places. Old or young, who looks out for stop signs in places where you’ve learned from experience there aren’t any? The only thing the highway people seem to have accomplished there is to encourage the alleged yielders high-tailing it to Rock Hall and points between and who already made it risky to eat at Brook’s (which, I have to say, is probably worth ANY risk) and/or get your car washed (which probably isn’t).
I thought it was pretty easy. I saw a new stop sign, so I stopped (not to mention the new stop warning sign, the new traffic pattern sign, the new writing on the road, and the new lane lines). The new traffic pattern definitely slows people down on route 20. I don’t really think that state roads could have done anything more to let people know of the new pattern.
What was wrong with the original plan, before the backwards yield?
I continue to think the new addition of the stop sign on 20 coming into Chestertown is a bad idea. I can not stand going to town to shop because of that sign. I think it is absolutely unnecessary. It is very inconvenient for those driving into town. It is very frustrating. I also agree with the other comment about the backwards yield sign. These two additions to this three way, throw off all the ‘rules of the road’ and do not make good sense. All people driving in an area where there have been accidents previously should just pay more attention to the road and other drivers. These changes were NEVER needed. The stop sign needs to go!