Intersection of Bristol, Broadway, and Willow

[davelew.livejournal.com]

I need someplace to vent, and this seems appropriate.

Every weekday, my route home from my work takes me down Bristol Rd, across Broadway at Ball Square, and onto Willow Ave. Nearly every day, someone coming the opposite direction on Willow Ave and turning left cuts me off at the traffic light. It's like people driving up Willow have no idea that it's a four-way intersection, and think they can turn left at will without yielding to oncoming traffic.

Today, a car cut me off, then slowed down. The four cars behind them closed ranks, and all crept past (while I honked and debated the merits of T-Boning them) until my light had changed from green to red. I had to shift into reverse and back up onto Bristol to avoid the Broadway traffic.

Then, to make matters worse, the car waiting in line at Willow nearly hit me when it tried to turn left onto Broadway through my car. I had just honked at four cars, how did she not know I was there? Is there a cloaking field covering the end of Bristol that masks my honking? Or is it a rudeness field over the end of Willow that makes drivers not care?

Comments

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

I seriously think there *is* a cloaking field there :(. Between the funny angle Bristol comes in at and how rarely it has traffic, I've not noticed oncoming traffic from it sometimes. I have to remind myself consciously to check Bristol when I'm making my right turn off of Willow whereas with any other street it would be duh, helLO, oncoming traffic?!?

It's very strange. Sorry it is giving you trouble :(.

[bikergeek.livejournal.com]

I know the street you mean. An appropriate engineering solution might be separate green phases for traffic exiting Bristol and traffic exiting Willow. Another might be a sign facing the traffic exiting from Willow: "LEFT TURN MUST YIELD ON GREEN (O)" (where the "(O)" is the "green ball" symbol) to remind drivers that they're supposed to yield to traffic proceeding "straight".

OT

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Does anyone also hate the way that routes 16 and 2 intersect? If you're coming off Route 2 eastbound and making the left onto 16, there's a place where there really ought to be only one lane, and only one lane is marked, but people line up in in 2 rows... then when the light turns green, both rows of traffic have to merge with the two westbound lanes into 2 very narrow lanes on 16 heading towards mass ave.

Usually if I can't get in the leftmost lane there, I go for the honking-and-praying style of merging.

[grapefruiteater.livejournal.com]

I go through that intersection every day, making the left from Willow onto Broadway. It can be hard to see traffic coming from Bristol for whatever reason. Maybe it's the angle of the street, as others have suggested—it's not EXACTLY across from Willow, so it's a little out of my field of vision when I'm sitting at the corner of Willow and Broadway.

Another thing I hate about that intersection is the morons who park in the no-parking zones at the end of Willow. It makes it difficult for other vehicles, particularly larger ones, to turn onto the street. A few weeks ago I was almost taken out by a garbage truck that had very little room to maneuver around an illegally parked van.

[danger-chick.livejournal.com]

Do you have a red car? I just heard that people don't see red cars very easily. Goodness knows why, since my car is often called "arrest me" red.

[afty.livejournal.com]

I'm a newcomer to the Davis area, and I have to admit I made this mistake just yesterday while driving up Willow and turning left onto Broadway. I almost hit a woman coming from Bristol, who honked loudly at me -- actually, I would have hit her if not for the honk.

[gwodder.livejournal.com]

sounds like everyone, everywhere, every day, driving in this town.

You're not REALLY surprised that people don't care if you are there/honk, are you?

Anyway, you're not describing anything specific to that intersection.

:D

[ron_newman]

I didn't even realize there was traffic entering that intersection from the north. I guess I thought that street was one-way away from Broadway.

[cos]

It is ridiculous to have the same green for Willow and Bristol at that intersection. There's no way drivers from Willow can be expected to notice it's a 4-way when it looks like a T; it's just setting people up for failure. Getting upset at them won't solve anything. Have you called your alderman? Really, seriously, call your alderman, this is exactly the sort of thing they exist for.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

I vote for cloaking field.

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

How about taking a different route? You know they'll get you eventually.

[billharnois.livejournal.com]

My vote is for T-Boning someone to get your point across.

[c-m-i.livejournal.com]

Don't worry about it - that intersection is in Ball Square, so you only have to wait two weeks before someone turns it - and everything else - into a breakfast joint.

Response from Alderman Gewirtz

[davelew.livejournal.com]

Late last night, I emailed Rebekah Gewirtz (alderman for ward 6 where this intersection is) and John Odonovan (alderman for ward 5, where I live just across the border from ward 6). This is Rebekah's response:


Hi David,
Thanks for writing about this. I will talk with the Traffic and Parking
Dept about this intersection and find out what they think would be a good
remedy. Your sign idea makes sense to me but I'd like to find out from the
traffic engineer what he suggests, as well.

I'll get back to you once I have more information.

Cheers,
Rebekah

____________________________________
Rebekah L. Gewirtz
Ward 6 Alderman, Somerville

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

The same thing happens at the other end of Broadway at Mt Vernon Street, except that intersection is nice and square, so I have no idea why southbound drivers on Mt Vernon always turn left across my path when I'm trying to go straight northbound.

Response from Alderman O'Donovan

[davelew.livejournal.com]

Here's the email I got back from Alderman Sean O'Donovan. I also got a very nice phone call from him in which he explained that he was also concerned about that intersection, but coordination with Medford as well as with other lights on Broadway made chahnging that light problematic. Here's his email:

Hi Mr. Lewinnek,

This is very much a troubled location. Ald. Gerwitz and I have discussed this w/ the Mayor and T & P. The Alderman is correct in that we need to have the sign recommendation analyzed by Terry Smith our T & P engineer. Mr. Smith is very much aware of this issue. Ball Square timing of its lights is an issue. The intersection works together as a scheme w/ those at Boston/B'dway. We are also trying to seek out State $$ to help the square. I have taken the liberty of forwarding your email to Mr. Smith. I hope that is OK?

Thanx Sean

[amethystmoon.livejournal.com]

When I lived on Bristol, I just learned to inch the hell up before the light turned green, be aggressive, and count on the fact that if I get rear-ended or someone hits the side of my car coming from Willow when I'm turning right on a green, they're at fault. I was rarely just going straight across though, which is much, much more of an issue. But then, I was also kind of hoping my car would get totaled... or stolen... it is still not cooperating with that wish... the car that will not die...

[tt02144.livejournal.com]

This has been a pet peeve of mine for a very long time! I think part of the reason for it is because there is not a lot of traffic coming out of Bristol Road, generally, so people actually are unaware that it's a street, and that the intersection, as you say, it 4-way. I also think it's because Willow Ave and Bristol Road don't line up exactly, like most intersections would. For this reason, I think many people truly don't realize that there could be cars coming from Bristol onto Willow. I am giving them the benefit of the doubt here, but trust me, I'm not so polite when I'm driving. I try to jump out ahead of cars which are turning, and honk if I have to!

[tt02144.livejournal.com]

I just finished reading all of the above responses. I thought I was the only one who hated the intersection of Route 2 and Route 16!! I also avoid it whenever possible. When I don't, I attempt to pull into the middle of the lane while awaiting a green light, so that (hopefully), noone will be able to pull alongside me. I'm not trying to be mean, I just think it's dangerous, when the light turns green, and then you have to merge into one lane, anyway, as well as merging with the lane to the right which is coming up from Fresh Pond. Sometimes I wonder what these engineers are thinking when they design roads!!