beat the cape cod traffic

Beat The Cape Cod Traffic

You’re cruising down the highway headin’ to the Cape, music playing, everybody blissfully anticipating a memory-making vacation. Life is good. Then it hits. TRAFFIC! Miles and miles of TRAFFIC. All of a sudden, in one dastardly moment, everything changes. Oh sure everybody tries to maintain that good mood for a while. The music continues to play. People are still smiling but the smiles are fading fast. Things are quieting down. You start calculating how long you are going to be stuck in traffic. Finally somebody mutters a single four-letter word and the misery has set in. The only thing worse than this scenario is the one that occurs at the end of your vacation, heading off the Cape. Then you’re anticipating a long ride home with nothing to look forward to but going back to work the next day.

People work themselves up into an absolute frenzy worrying about the Cape traffic. Every weekend during the summer there are news teams stationed at the rotaries. News helicopters hover over the bridges. The airways resound with the reports on the miles of traffic leading to the Bourne and Sagamore bridges. These reports literally drive people away from the Cape.

I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to sit in traffic anymore. I have lived on the Cape, traveling the bridges and rotaries several times a day for the past for 14 years. I very rarely get stuck in traffic. When I do have a problem I am never bumper-to-bumper more than 5 or 10 minutes.

The worst times for traffic are Friday evening or Saturday morning coming on the Cape and Sunday, all day, is the most difficult time for getting off the Cape. One of the biggest frustrations is that you don’t know if the bridges are backed up until it’s too late (don’t trust the traffic reports). The key is to get off the highways early, before you get stuck in traffic, even if the traffic seems to be moving along fine. When you are traveling along the highway you have to ask yourself, "Do I feel lucky?" If you decide to gamble by staying on the highway you won’t find out there is traffic until mile or two before the bridge or rotary. By this time it’s too late. You are stuck. A couple of miles of bumper-to-bumper traffic can take forever.

There is a better way. If you are willing to drive a few extra miles out of your way and invest a few extra minutes traveling back roads, you can save yourself hours of misery. Just follow these simple directions to ensure a more relaxing vacation on the Cape.

A Few Words On The Rotaries

The Bourne Rotary

The Bourne rotary is a well-designed rotary and traffic usually flows relatively smoothly but a rotary is still a rotary. You always have to be hyper-vigilant to prevent the dreaded vacation-dampening fender-bender. If you are coming into the rotary you have to yield to the cars already in the rotary. The cars in the rotary have the right-of-way.
Once in the Bourne rotary you have to decide whether you want to go across the Bourne Bridge or travel on the Scenic Highway to the Sagamore Rotary. If you are going on to Falmouth along Route 28 you will be going on to the Bourne Bridge. If you are heading down Route 6 you will be going to the Sagamore Rotary.

The Sagamore Rotary

In contrast to the relatively well-designed Bourne Rotary, the Sagamore Rotary is a living nightmare. I travel the rotary several times each day, all year long, and I am always amazed when I can get around without an accident. The only way to merge into the flow of traffic is to force your way in. This inability to merge smoothly creates huge traffic back-ups on all five roads leading into the rotary. The worst back-ups occur on Route 3 heading down from Boston and the Scenic Highway connecting the Bourne and Sagamore rotaries. There are ways to avoid the traffic leading to the rotary but the only way to avoid the Sagamore rotary is to take the Bourne Bridge. Getting around the rotary is itself an art and is the subject of another book entirely.
Coming ON Cape

Heading To The Cape On Route 495 South

If you’re headed toward the Bourne Bridge on 495 South your best bet is to take Exit 1 that reads "6 and 28". This takes you to the Cranberry Highway and on to the Bourne Rotary. Exit 1 is several miles before the Bourne Bridge and the traffic is usually moving along pretty well at that point. My advice is to bite the bullet and take the exit. The Cranberry Highway will only take you a few extra minutes but it can save you hours if there is traffic at the bridge.

You have to be sure to take the correct Exit 1. The exits can be confusing because the last exit on 495 South is Exit 1 and the first exit you come to on Route 25 is also called Exit 1. Take Exit 1 off of Route 25 (the three lane highway) that says Route 6 and 28.
At the end of the exit ramp you merge into traffic and stay to the left at the upcoming fork. You then go straight through three sets of lights before you merge onto the Cranberry Highway. The Cranberry highway runs parallel to Route 25. Before 25 was connected to 495 this was the main roadway to the Cape. The Cranberry Highway is a congested business route with countless restaurants and stores. There are a lot of cars on this road and there are a few traffic lights but the traffic usually moves along pretty well. This road will save you oceans of time if the Bourne Bridge is backed up.

As you approach the town of Buzzards Bay, at the end of the Cranberry Highway there is a mini-rotary. If you just continue straight through without going around the rotary you will go through the business center of Buzzards Bay as you travel toward the Bourne Rotary. Alternatively you can go one third of the way around the mini-rotary and take the by-pass road directly to the Bourne rotary.

Heading From the Bourne Rotary Toward the Sagamore Rotary.

The Scenic Highway connects the Bourne and the Sagamore Rotaries. As you travel along the beautiful Scenic Highway you crest a hill and get a magnificent view of the canal, the Sagamore Bridge and usually a horrifying traffic jam heading toward the Sagamore rotary. There is a roundabout way around this snag that may save you a ton of time and aggravation.
If you see the traffic building up at the top of the hill you have to bail out. Take a left at the set of lights at the bottom of the hill where you will see a motel on your left and a canal parking area on your right. After you take this left you will come to an intersection with a country store directly in front of you. Take a left and stay to the right at the upcoming fork to take Herring Pond Road. You follow this road for several miles driving along side a beautiful lake. This road will eventually take you under Route 3 to Route 3A. Very important! Do not take Route 3!!. Travel under the Route 3 overpass and take a right onto Route 3A. Follow 3A to Meeting House road. When you reach Meeting House Road you will have a gas station on the right and Dunkin’ Donuts across the street. Take a right and you are at the Sagamore rotary.

Approaching The Sagamore Rotary From Route 3 South

If you are coming to the Cape down Route 3 from the Boston area, there is almost always a back up approaching the Sagamore Rotary. Your best bet is to get off at Exit 2 and go down Route 3A to the rotary. There is chance that the traffic will be moving along magnificently by the time you get to Exit 2. You may want to convince yourself to stay on Route 3 all the way to the rotary. This is usually a mistake. There are no exits between Exit 2 and the rotary. Once you get past Exit 2 you are committed. If the traffic backs up a mile before the rotary you are going to be sitting in traffic forever with no escape. Be on the safe side and take Exit 2. At the end of the ramp take a right and go back under Route 3. You then come to the intersection of Route 3A. Take a right onto 3A go to the intersection with Meeting House Road. When you reach Meeting House Road you will have a gas station on the right and Dunkin’ Donuts across the street. Take a right. This will bring you to the Sagamore rotary.

Going OFF Cape By Traveling Along Route 6 Service Road

One of the best-kept secrets is the service road, which runs exactly parallel to the westbound side of Route 6 from Exit 6 to Exit 2. You can actually see Service Road if you look to your right when traveling along Route 6 West. Service Road can be accessed by taking any exit between 6 and 2. This road has ready access any time you run into traffic along Route 6. You can take Service Road all the way to Exit 2 but Exit 2 is the end of the line. To get to the bridge from Exit 2 see the section, "From Exit 2 to Route 6A"

Route 6A

Another alternative to Route 6 traffic is Route 6A. If you know or at least strongly suspect that there will be traffic heading off Cape it may be wise to get off Route 6 at Exit 2 or 3 and travel along Route 6A to the bridges. This is a nicer road, usually doesn’t get too backed up with traffic and doesn’t take much longer than just traveling along Route 6 without traffic. You usually don’t need to bail out of Route 6 until you hit Exit 3. However if you are trying to go off Cape on the weekend you would be foolish to take a chance on making it all the way to the bridge on Route 6. Get off at least by Exit 2 even if the traffic is moving fine. Exit 2 is the point of no return. An hour or two stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic heading off Cape is enough to snuff-out any piece of mind you may have been able to muster-up on your vacation.

From Exit 3 to get to Route 6A

At the end of the ramp for Exit 3 you take a right and travel approximately 1 mile to Route 6A. Take a left and follow 6A for approximately 4.5 miles through Sandwich and into Sagamore. From here you can go to either the Sagamore Bridge or the Bourne Bridge. To get to the Sagamore Bridge take a left at the Mobil gas station. To get to the Bourne Bridge continue on 6A, under the Sagamore Bridge and straight through the lights along Sandwich Road. This road takes you directly to Bourne Bridge.

From Exit 2 to Route 6A

Take a left at the end of the Exit 2 ramp and travel along route 130 toward Sandwich. As you approach the town you will pass a school on the right and a duck pond on the left. You then come to a confusing intersection as you approach Sandwich Village. Take a left at the intersection. From here you can take an immediate right onto Tupper road, which takes you to 6A. Alternatively you can stay on this road to meet up with 6A further down. Either way, once you get to 6A take a left and follow until you get into Sagamore. From here you can go to either the Sagamore Bridge or the Bourne Bridge. To get to the Sagamore Bridge take a left at the Mobil gas station. To get to the Bourne Bridge continue on 6A under, the Sagamore Bridge and straight through the lights along Sandwich Road. This road takes you directly to Bourne Bridge.

Heading From the Sagamore Rotary Toward the Bourne Rotary.

When you’re heading home and planning to head up 495 North your troubles are not necessarily over when you cross the bridge. There is often a huge snag of traffic approaching the Bourne Rotary along the Scenic Highway that connects the Sagamore and the Bourne rotaries. You may need to take a right at the lights at the bottom of the hill where you will see a motel on your right and a canal parking area on your left. After you take this right you will come to an intersection with a country store directly in front of you. Take a left and stay to the left at the upcoming fork to take Bournedale Road. This is a winding residential road and you need to take it easy. This road eventually ends at the junction with Head of the Bay Road. Take a left at the Head of the Bay Road and you’re at the Bourne Rotary.