Go back to the Safety Report Table of Contents.

EDITING IN PROGRESS
Please do not change the content on this page!
Use the "comments" section below to add your 2¢.






SITE DESCRIPTION:
The intersection of Queens Chapel and Nicholson lies in Wards 2 and 3. Nicholson intersects with Queens Chapel Road at the top of a long incline. The long incline makes it difficult for pedestrians to see cars coming (particularly those coming from the south) until they are nearly on top of them. This is compounded by the high speed of traffic going in both directions. Cars turning onto Nicholson, or crossing Queens Chapel while continuing on Nicholson, gather in the middle of the intersection, making it dangerous for pedestrians to cross at this point. Often there will be two or three cars jockeying for position in the middle of the intersection, paying no attention to pedestrians that might be crossing. Commuters going to the Prince George's Plaza metro station, or the bus stop on the West Hyattsville side of the intersection, must deal with traffic coming from multiple directions when crossing Queens Chapel.

The entire stretch from Nicholson to Queensbury is a danger zone for pedestrians and bikers traveling to and from Prince George's Plaza metro station and the commercial areas of Prince George's mall and the strip mall which contains Starbucks and CVS. There are no crosswalks in this zone until you get to the other side of Queensbury. Furthermore, there are no traffic lights anywhere between Hamilton and Queensbury, so many pedestrians take their chances crossing at multiple points along this stretch. During rush hour, it is common to observe pedestrians darting halfway across Queens Chapel, waiting for a break in the traffic, and then running across the other two lanes of oncoming traffic. It is especially dangerous for people crossing with small children, the elderly and those in wheelchairs.

RECOMMENDATIONS:
Although SHA has determined that this intersection does not qualify for a traffic light, the City Council should revisit this issue. One of the selling points of Hyattsville is our access to two metro stops. For those residents on the eastside of Hyattsville who live closer to Prince George's Plaza metro station, walking to the metro is a matter of taking your life in your own hands. There should be a light and a crosswalk at this intersection. A light would also serve to make this another entry point into the east side of Hyattsville from West Hyattsville and reduce the number of cars continually stacking up in the middle of the intersection.

• Add traffic light and pedestrian crossing signal
• Add crosswalk? (LG addition)

JURISDICTIONS:
Queens Chapel Rd. (Rte. 500) - Maryland State Highway Administration
Nicholson St.- City of Hyattsville
Wards - This intersection lies in Hyattsville Wards 3 & 2

HISTORY:

There are limited sight lines on Queens Chapel at Nicholson. The large distance involved in turning left onto Queens Chapel while it still had three lanes and a very narrow median required traffic to make the left turn in one motion. Making the left onto northbound Queens Chapel from Nicholson in one arcing motion took more time than the limited sight distance allowed when high speed traffic appeared from over the hill to the south on Queens Chapel.

The SHA and a community committee did a study within the last ten years that resulted in re-marking the surrounding sections of Queens Chapel Road to change from three lanes each way to two, allowing a bike lane on each side and a larger median, where left turning cross traffic could safely stop and check again for oncoming traffic. As funding was limited, paint was the only change implemented initially, with the hardscape to follow as funding permits. This funding has been reduced again but there might still be some improvements forthcoming. The latest meeting with SHA indicated only a bike lane improvement at this intersection. SHA's plans should be monitored. The City of Hyattsville has repeatedly asked the SHA for a traffic light at Nicholson Street. Two studies (most recent ~2003/4) have been conducted to determine if the traffic justifies a light. SHA determined it does not.

ACCIDENTS:

This intersection has seen significant traffic accidents. Two pedestrians were killed on the sidewalk in this area when an elderly man lost control of his car on Queens Chapel. The City Police did a study of this intersection for the SHA - Community committee meetings.

The accident above was not reported in the study SHA did for our committee. According to Maryland State Highway Administration, from 2001 to 2005, within 0.2 mile of intersection:

Queens Chapel Rd. @ Nicholson St. - no police reported pedestrian or bike accidents