BANGOR, Maine — While it’s not considered one of the more dangerous intersections in Bangor or the state, the one where Third Street meets Cedar Street is one of the most problematic.
After a couple of attempts to increase safety and decrease the frequency of accidents at the limited visibility intersection, the Maine Department of Transportation hopes its latest refinement will help motorists drive more safely.
The MDOT has introduced a $25,000 radar-based system called an Intersection Crash Avoidance System, or ICAS. It is one of only four that the department has installed in the state so far.
“We put the first one in Norridgewock seven or eight years ago,” said Steve Landry, MDOT assistant traffic engineer. “We’d rather not put a lot of them out there.
“We try not to overuse some of these approaches in order to get more compliance and safety because the more they’re out there, the more people get used to them and disregard them.”
So what makes this intersection — along with those in Norridgewock, Sanford and Lebanon — the exception to the rule?
“It has had a long history of crashes and accidents,” said Bangor City Engineer Art Morgan. “That particular intersection has a high incidence level of crashes, primarily because of poor visibility and the slopes of Cedar Street.”
The system involves a digital readout on a screen mounted on a telephone pole, visible to motorists approaching the stop signs on Third Street. When cars travel up or down Cedar Street, digital outlines of cars light up on the screens — on one side for cars going down the hill and on the other for those coming up.
“When you’re stopped at the light at Third, you’ll see an approaching-vehicle diagram of one approaching,” said Morgan.
Before the ICAS was installed, the MDOT put in flashing red lights above the intersection on Third Street and flashing yellows on Cedar. Stop signs are also on Third Street.
“This is really a Band-aid approach,” said Landry. “There’s not a lot of room there to do major construction, and you don’t want to create one problem to solve another.”
Landry said MDOT officials gave serious consideration to creating a roundabout at the intersection about seven or eight years ago.
“Yes, but you’ve got quite a construction upgrade requirement there,” he said. “We put in some bump-outs so the sidewalks jut more out into the intersection, but that had somewhat minimal results.”
Landry said the MDOT studies and evaluates high-crash locations all over the state and puts out a work plan every two years.
“We looked at putting this in about two years ago and started work in July,” said Landry, who added that the radar is still being adjusted for optimum performance. “It’s not a perfect fix, but it should help, and there really isn’t a downside to it.”
Charles Ohlwine, a North Carolina native who moved to a house on the corner of the intersection at 115 Cedar in July, 2011, says he thinks the system is helping safety, albeit slowly.
“When we first moved in here, two vans collided right here at this intersection and it took about 30 minutes for the cops to get here,” he said. “Sometimes they slow down. I think it’ll help, but it’ll take some time.”
I don’t know this area that well – have they ever tried a 4-way stop here? I note that it’s a 2-way now, but putting stops/red lights on cedar as well would seem to slow things down.
Steep hill with poor visibility meets Third Street (an area frequented by people who just scored drugs trying to get away from their dealers houses). Rather than spend more money on infrastructure in the 1st-3rd Street area, I say we plow it under and start over.
The problem is that even though there are stop signs on 3rd, almost nobody stops at them. I have personally almost gotten hit twice on cedar st by people who are driving on 3rd and don’t even bother to slow down at the intersection, let a lone stop!
A lot of people simply don’t pay attention and assume Third Street has priority, i.e., no stop sign. I can’t tell you how many people I have seen stop while going up or down Cedar because, they too, weren’t paying attention and assumed Third Steet had priority.
The hill on Cedar Street heading away from Main would make stopping and then resuming travel during the winter about impossible . My guess is that is why a 4 way stop has not been attempted.
Is the Cedar Street hill steeper than State Street in Bangor or North Main and State in Brewer? There are stop lights at both of those hills and people seem to manage in the winter.
as someone above said, people driving on Cedar St from Main St are going up a steep hill at Third St and it would be awkward to stop at a stop sign on the hill and would be very bad in the winter.
OMG, now the people that are afraid of smart meters will avoid this area being afraid they will be radiated with RF..
Yay….now there is a $25,000 ICAS to ignore along with the stop sign. Good work.
So you are implying that the majority of drivers and yourself ignore stop signs or other type of warning devices, correct?
If you stop were the sign is and then go you are talking almost a 100 feet to Cedar Street. Its a very poor setup. $25k could be spent on a traffic light system. Lepage just cut a little more on the EBT cards and the problem is solved.
you always find some comment to pick on… he’s not the only one saying people ignore signs and other things… hence the article and new 25,000 dollar sign!
I didn’t know miheesoterehkool spelled 4Reals.
what do you people live on here? ugh. sad.
Ummm…not really. If people (I don’t make a habit of ignoring stop signs) are running the stop enough to warrant a $25k system, then what makes people think the new system will be paid attention to? It is a poor set-up with the hill, but if people actually stopped and paid attention it wouldn’t be as bad. I’ve seen people just cruise through there on more than one occasion.
Half the problem is that solid wood fence, and where they place the stop line on that side of Third Street. When that line was more forward so you could see past the fence, and it was much better. Could have save the money by moving the line forward, and maybe asking the resident on that corner to move the fence back. Maybe even take it down.
you cant put a 4 way stop on that intersection because of the steepness of cedar st hill, it would be more dangerous to try and stop and restart esp in winter time. You can see the flashing red lights as soon as you turn onto the street in either direction. But I honestly dont think people see it. Even with a stop sign there people get up to 50mph within 50feet of the stop sign. I’ve lived 5 houses down from this corner for 20 years and I cant count the amount of accidents I’ve counted there. Some very serious. Its usually from traffic NOT stopping on 3rd st and cars coming up cedar st that just cant be seen in time. Putting a rotary would be impossible, you’d take out peoples yards and houses to do that. Personally I will not depends on these smart cameras because they arent accurate, they light up when no cars are coming and dont light up when some cars are. or they say from one direction when its the other. you dont even see them unless your really looking because they are up so high. and its not just drugies, its people getting their kids from school, traffic from main street, union street, hammond street, buck street. its becoming more of a highway cut through than a street. people constantly go down the street doing 50mph when there are kids out playing. sure lets just spend 25 grand on little cameras that arent even going to do much good. just wasting more money.
“We try not to overuse some of these approaches in order to get more compliance and safety because the more they’re out there, the more people get used to them and disregard them.”
Just like them stop signs, yield signs and red lights…and other signs and signals commonly found throughout the state and in your motorist handbook. (That thing people should read before the state gives you a license to the free world of lack of traffic enforcement)
Good Idea.. That is a tricky spot. I go to the Bangor Rescue Misson to donate clothing through 3rd street and you have to be careful and not in a hurry at that intersection.. Thanks for the light.
“The MDOT has introduced a $25,000 radar-based system called an Intersection Crash Avoidance System, or ICAS.” Please spend some money on filling the trenches and holes in the middle of most of the streets in Bangor. And don’t you dare say funds are short.
Well, I’m one who likes to go like a bat out of heck and see if I can get all 4 wheels off the ground. Better look out.
3rd and Cedar eh? Yeah, that is an awesome part of town. How long do ya think it will take the juvenile delinquents from the Shaw House and Shelter to stone that new sign to the breaking point, rendering that 25,000 completely wasted?? I wouldnt imagine it will take very long.
What if they made them one way streets? Just an idea. Don’t really know the roads.
And your suggestion? Just curious. There’s obviously a problem there that they felt needed addressing. Or maybe just the right lawmaker had a close call there, I don’t know.
I heard it has cameras on on it Jeff
The intersectionof Second Streetand Cedar is just as bad if not worse!!! You can’t see traffic coming up the hill at all.
There has always been a problem at that intersection, and Second and Sanford also with the bad visability on the hills . I remember several accidents there as a kid and it was usually someone not familiar with the area that did not know someone was trying to get up some speed up to go all the way to Hammond in the winter.
As the MDOT engineer says, there are “crashes,” not accidents.
How about we ask the cops to start enforcing the laws on the books…………bust people for going over the speed limit, even 1 or 2 mph over or for ” rolling ” through stop signs. The income from fines alone would add greatly to the police departments’ budgets. Imagine how much money could be made in just one afternoon , why in no time at all the cash overflow would fill the coffers of the state and local governments, not to mention how much safer the roads would be ! By the way , a side benefit would be that our nation would see a reduction of useless laws being introduced as more lawyers would be needed to defend those who claim innocence in our courts. Can’t you just see all the new Mercedes and Beemers down by the courthouse.
25G?! I could do that for $1,500.
stop means stop then look both way’s not stop and go
There would be fewer accidents if everyone would simply practice defensive driving. In other words, don’t just assume the other vehicle is going to stop or yield just because he’s supposed to. It’s not worth the risk, and sometimes taking that few extra seconds to see what the other vehicle is doing can make all the difference between getting into an accident – or not.
On a side note Hammond St will install flashing neon hypodermic needles to signal “Transient Tussles.” When a fight breaks out the needle will change from a steady green color to a flashing red one.The flashing will show the plunger moving down and liquid drugs spraying out of the needle end.