BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – The installation of chicanes on Notch Road aimed to prevent stuck trucks this busy season – and for the most part, it worked.
If you’re driving an SUV, the notch’s tight turns are nerve-wracking but doable. But bigger vehicles can struggle or even get stuck despite the chicanes warning them of what’s ahead.
In the days leading up to Meredith and Tom Wester’s stay in Stowe, they researched hiking trails, popular restaurants, and how to navigate the chicanes.
“My dad actually found a YouTube video online that showed someone driving through the chicanes, and you watched it with him,” said Meredith.
Tom drove their RV through the chicanes and the notch’s narrow turns that follow.
“It was beautiful to drive through, but it was a little nerve-wracking,” said Tom.
The Agency of Transportation installed the chicanes on Stowe and Cambridge entrances to the notch this May.
The curvy segways consist of temporary curbs and orange barrels designed to mimic the notch’s twists and turns. They’re meant to warn truck and bus drivers of what’s to come – but not everyone listens.
Some drivers skirt the chicanes entirely by sneaking through adjacent parking lots or exit roads before getting stuck on the notch.
Just last month, a tour bus was trapped at the summit, holding up traffic during one of Route 108′s busiest times of year.
Todd Sears with the Agency of Transportation hoped clear signage and expensive fines would be enough to deter drivers.
“It’s well marked. It would be nice to know drivers as they come up on either side are to just follow the directions of the signage, to be aware that this chicane is coming,” Sears explained.
Despite some snags, the agency says September marks the only blockage since the chicanes were installed.
A tractor-trailer also snuck past the chicanes in May, though the agency doesn’t consider it a ‘stuckage’ as it was flagged down before getting stuck at the summit.
All in all, it’s a nearly 85% decrease in stuckages from the five-year annual average.
Sears encourages drivers to follow directions to prevent headaches for them and the many tourists flooding the notch.