For Immediate Release – August 11, 2022
Contact: John Theriault, Chief Engineer
207-992-4250 | engineering@bangormaine.gov
Engineering Department Announces 15th Street Traffic Demonstration Project
Bangor, Maine: At the March 16, 2021 Infrastructure Committee Meeting, staff from the Engineering Department discussed the concerns of a Fifteenth Street resident regarding the number of vehicle crashes that were occurring at the intersection of Union Street and Fifteenth Street. The intersection is about 75 feet from the signalized intersection of the northbound on and off ramps at Union Street. Typically, during periods of heavy traffic, vehicle stacking from the traffic signal on Union Street can make it difficult for motorists on Fifteenth Street and Union Street to make left turns. This congestion may result in motorists practicing unsafe driving behaviors which may then result in vehicle crashes.
The Engineering Department reviewed the three-year crash data from the Maine Department of Transportation that showed that the intersection is classified as a high crash location with eight crashes occurring in a three-year period. The majority of these crashes (5) involved motorists making a left turn in or out of Fifteenth Street.
The typical mitigation for addressing this pattern of left turn crashes is to modify access to the intersection to right turn in and right turn out only. The Engineering Department has prepared a concept plan of the intersection that shows a raised island along Union Street that would restrict vehicle access at the Fifteenth Street/Union Street intersection.
The Engineering Department and Public Works conduct a temporary demonstration project starting today, August 11th. The intersection demonstration will utilize traffic barrels and signage that would temporarily create the right turn in/right turn out traffic restriction such that the neighborhood and City staff can observe the traffic impacts associated with making this change.
The Engineering Department will conduct before and after traffic counts to have actual data on the traffic impacts resulting from the change in traffic access at the intersection. We anticipate that the demonstration project would last about a month.
The Engineering Department will hold a public meeting following the demonstration project to discuss the traffic impacts and determine if the neighborhood is in support of this safety improvement project. Following the public meeting, the City Council will then determine if they wish the Engineering Department to move forward with the construction of the safety improvement project.
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The City of Bangor, Maine is a service center community of 33,039 residents and is the county seat of Penobscot County. Bangor is the major commercial and cultural center for much of northern and eastern Maine. The City is an Equal Opportunity Employer and service provider. For more information on City projects and news, see bangormaine.gov.