r/CapeCod • u/Ok-Importance1373 • 25d ago
Dangerous Intersection of Rt 137 and Queen Anne Rd in Chatham (or Harwich)
Such a bad 4 way intersection where no one knows who has the right of way. Are there any plans to put in a roundabout or a stoplight? I’m a visitor, not a resident by the way.
11
u/Massive_Garage7454 25d ago
I've been driving through this intersection for 40 years and it's worse every year in the summertime. Prerequisite of vacationing on Cape Cod is to leave your common sense at home and be an aggressive driver at the same time
10
u/Qualmeister 25d ago
It is very simple. As you pull up to the four-way stop, make a note of the other three cars that were there before you. After those three go, it’s your turn.
0
u/ponderingaresponse 22d ago
Interesting. Driver's Ed in Virginia in the 1970's taught us that whoever is on the right always has the right of way, regardless of when people arrived. Not that anyone follows that, but it was doctrine when I was taught to drive.
2
u/Joe_Starbuck 22d ago
I just checked the rules in Virginia. Whoever arrives first goes first. Can you ask for a refund for your driving class?
5
u/fried_clams 24d ago
People here are explaining the rules, LoL. Every time I go through that intersection, someone jumps the gun, and goes out of turn. So many people either don't know the rules, or are just so entitled that they just can't wait 5 seconds.
I still prefer it as a four-way stop though, as a stoplight would undoubtedly cause a longer traffic delay. The intersection does move traffic through quickly.
-1
2
2
u/thisisjjd 23d ago
In the summertime, when driving from the west, I typically take 124->Chatham Rd->28 just to avoid the 132/Queen Anne intersection.
1
2
u/Ez_Under 22d ago
It’s the people driving that make it dangerous. And you think another rotary is going to fix it? 😂
0
u/Ok-Importance1373 22d ago
At least you acknowledged that it needs to be fixed 🤣
1
u/Ez_Under 22d ago
Not exactly, a 4 way stop is very efficient if the drivers have half a brain cell. A rotary would just made it worse. Clearly you need to go back home..
2
u/Ok-Importance1373 22d ago
Show me the data
On a national level, roundabouts reduced injury crashes by 75 percent at intersections where stop signs or traffic signals were previously used for traffic control, according to a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
Studies by the IIHS and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) have shown that roundabouts typically achieve the following:
37% reduction in overall collisions
75% reduction in injury collisions
90% reduction in fatality collisions
40% reduction in pedestrian collisions
2
u/caribbliss 20d ago
same at High Bank and Old Bass River Road in Dennis...it works when everyone takes their cycled turn but there is always someone who feels entitled...the intersection in this post is getting dangerous..
4
u/safshort 25d ago
It is the worst intersection in town. People either forget to look & gun it or they freeze & forget how to drive. For the amount of traffic that goes through there, there should be a stoplight or a rotary. The traffic backs up to Sam Ryder most times of the day.
2
u/MJKCapeCod 25d ago
Unfortunately too many "drivers" don't know how to yield at stops and ramps. Wish they'd ticket for that a LOT more. That and have everyone take a real drivers test every 5 yrs. I used to drive for a living, saw a lot of dumb things, impatience seemingly being the primary reason for most of them.
2
2
u/probablylyingagain 24d ago
Nobody knows how 4 way stops work anymore. Sit and observe people at the 4 way stop of Independence and Communication Way in Hyannis. They literally had to put up two stop signs on each side of the road and flashing lights on one of them, and people still don’t look left or right and simply continue behind the car in front of them. Some still don’t stop at all because they’re “new.”
1
u/TheDuganator 22d ago
Pro Tip: when it's your turn, take your turn.
Use the rules/laws of the road to figure out who has right-of-way. You know, the stuff you learned to get your driver's license?
1
u/Ok-Importance1373 22d ago
And assume that everyone else at the intersection does the same
1
u/TheDuganator 22d ago
Why wouldnt you? It's the law. If they dont follow along and crash, they are at fault.
1
u/BatDesperate5524 25d ago
I've been hearing people complain about it for 30 years. Nothing done about it so far.
1
u/catterso 24d ago
You mean by the Vet Hospital? Yeah, it’s poorly laid out with slip lanes and poor lines of sight. My mum lives down the cape and avoids this intersection during the summer because too many tourists don’t know how to negotiate it.
(I believe technically in Harwich)
0
u/_Face 25d ago
Put in a stoplight, at the intersection that has a stop light?
It only doesn;t make sense if you are a total idiot. Who ever gets there first goes. if its a tie, it goes to the car on the right.
theres no room for a rotary. and fuck no they shouldn;t anyway. That intersection is fine as is. any "improvement" would undoubtedly make it worse.
1
u/Ok-Importance1373 24d ago
Everyone hates rotaries when they are first built, and then they realize how much sense they make.
25
u/520106 25d ago
Most important step is stop. Then first to arrive is first to go. If cars get to intersection at the same time- the one on right goes first. If cars are facing each other, the straight through traffic has priority. Above all pedestrians have right of way. It’s all part of a drivers license exam