Neighbors pushing to remove new stop signs at Montgomery Village intersection

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. ( DC News Now ) – Stop signs were recently installed at the intersection of Stedwick and Watkins Mill Roads in Montgomery Village and some neighbors are not happy about it.

One neighbor started a petition to get rid of the stop signs shortly after they were installed on April 16.

That neighbor said since the installation, the stop signs have caused significant delays on Watkins Mill Road. She also says the congestion caused by the signs pose potential safety risks for emergency vehicles.

Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) chief traffic engineer, Michael Paylor, says the signs were installed at the intersection because they received a request from a neighbor last fall.

“It’s down the street from Stedwick Elementary,” Paylor said. “It’s right across the street from the Watkins Mill Recreation Center, and an all-way crossing installation allows folks to safely cross the intersection and have vehicles stop.”

Paylor says his department has received a complaint about the new stop signs at the intersection, and they’re planning to look into it.

“I’m thinking what we’ll probably do is we’ll probably set up some kind of cameras,” he said. “Maybe a person will go out on one of the days and look, but I believe we need to look holistically at what might be happening out here.”

But not all neighbors think the signs are an issue.

“I feel like it’s cool,” Liam Thomas said. “I feel like a lot of people didn’t expect it. I didn’t expect it being here for so many years. I feel like it’s smart because a lot of people don’t know who has the right-of-way, especially on that intersection.”

Paylor says an assessment of the intersection will take place either this week or next week.

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