STOWE, Vt. (WCAX) – The Smugglers’ Notch mountain pass is known for being a beautiful drive, and for trapping trailer trucks.
Big trucks are known for getting stuck on Notch Road, but now, installations called chicanes have been installed as a hopeful fix to the problem.
Some say they think the chicanes may be good for trucks.
“I think it’s probably helpful right cause you know if someone doesn’t know that even with the signs and stuff they get stuck up here could be probably challenging to get out, especially with those switchbacks and stuff,” said David Taishoff of New Hampshire.
Visitors who had never seen a chicane say they were surprised to see and drive through.
“It was really interesting to navigate and was like why is this happening, and they’re like, ‘if you don’t fit you won’t make it,’ and I was like ‘oh that’s smart!’,” said Rebecca Cambor from Long Island, New York.
The chicanes are designed to mimic the sharp curves that you will find up the road.
Richard Litchfield of Stowe Rotary Club says it’s the second year his organization is holding a ‘Stuck Truck’ raffle, where people can bet on when the first truck of the year will get stuck on the road. He also says with the new infrastructure in place, things are looking different.
“This year we’ve had limited interest because I think day two after they opened the Notch, a truck got around the new chicanes that are in place but was able to extricate itself and drove out all by itself. It was not classified as a stuck truck,” said Litchfield.
But he says he doesn’t think the chicanes will work in the long run. “The verdict still out there on that, and I think the fact that one truck already went around those chicanes is evident that we might need a little bit more help to get this issue put to bed,” said Litchfield.
If the chicanes do their job and there’s no stuck truck this season, all proceeds will go to the Stowe Rotary Club Scholarship Fund.