March 29, 2024
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Intersection safety questioned

SANGERVILLE – Just how to improve safety at the four-way intersection in the heart of Sangerville was discussed Thursday by about 20 residents and Commissioner David Cole of the Maine Department of Transportation.

The majority of residents who attended the meeting expressed their frustrations with the high volume of traffic, the excessive speeds used by motorists and the resulting accidents and near misses that occur at the intersection.

They suggested that the state install a warning light or resume the four-way stop that was in place during the DOT’s recent bridge replacement project. The four-way stop was removed in November, and the location reverted back to a two-way stop.

Cole was given a petition on Thursday signed by about 90 people who want some kind of resolution to the safety problem.

The commissioner said his department would review traffic studies and standards, and would weigh the concerns aired by residents before making a decision by next week.

Victor Smith, a DOT engineer who also attended the meeting, said the state has standards regarding the placement of signs and traffic lights to ensure conformity. He said eight accidents were reported at the intersection in the last five years, so it is not a high crash site.

The fact that there are crosswalks near the intersection which are used by a visually impaired resident and older residents complicates the matter, according to Sangerville Town Manager Dick Drummond.

Studies show traffic on Route 23 has increased by 46 percent over a 10-year period, and it also has increased on Pleasant Avenue and Douty Hill Road.

The volume of traffic and the speeds used are cause for concern, according to Selectman Rick Pellerin.

“The speed [used by motorists] is incredible,” he said. Pellerin told Cole that he crosses the intersection four times a day each weekday walking to and from his home and workplace. “It’s scary, I’ve jumped in the snowbank a few times myself.”

Both Sen. Paul Davis, R-Sangerville, a former state trooper who solicited Cole’s attendance at the meeting, and Piscataquis County Sheriff John Goggin said speed enforcement is not the only answer.

Goggin said the four-way stop not only slowed the traffic down, but it also made drivers more courteous.

Not everyone, however, supports a change at the location.

David Littlefield of Guilford and Alan Nickerson of Sangerville, both heavy equipment operators, said a four-way stop would make it difficult for large trucks and suggested that enforcement was the issue.

Correction: A shorter version of this article ran in the State and Coastal editions.

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