A federal- and state-funded process to update the Route 6A Corridor Management Plan, first prepared by the Cape Cod Commission in 1995. The plan focuses on the 34-mile corridor of Cape Cod's scenic byway, Route 6A (also known as the Old King's Highway), which stretches east from Bourne to Orleans. The update considers land uses, historic and scenic resources, and transportation along the corridor and will make recommendations to address resource protection and traffic/safety issues. The Commission completed the study in June 2010, releasing the report on the update: Route 6A Scenic Byway: Corridor Management Plan Update.
Yarmouth Road in Barnstable experiences significant vehicle queues during peak hours of operation. Yarmouth Road serves as an important access road into Hyannis Center, and the corridor is the primary access for some Cape towns to the Cape Cod Hospital. Seasonal and peak-hour congestion often delay emergency vehicles' access to the hospital. A viable Yarmouth Road corridor is significant for many modes of transportation, including walking, biking, automobile, transit, and rail. The Hyannis Transportation Center is located off Route 28, a short distance from the Yarmouth Road/Route 28 intersection. The Yarmouth Road/Willow Street Corridor Study, as part of the Commission's transportation planning contract with the Massachusetts Highway Department, will develop alternatives to improve access for all modes of transportation along this corridor.
The Cape Cod Commission transportation staff conducts annual traffic counts across Cape Cod. The information provides the basis for the identification of transportation improvements, analysis of the traffic impacts of new development, and projection of future travel trends.
The Regional Transportation Plan is the primary means by which federal and state funds are allocated to the Cape's transportation needs. The Cape Cod Metropolitan Planning Organization, a collaboration of local, regional, state, and federal transportation officials, votes on this federally required document, which is compiled and maintained by the transportation staff of the Cape Cod Commission.
US Route 6 in the towns of Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, and Provincetown is a 27-mile stretch of state highway servicing, at some locations, well over 30,000 vehicles per summer day. The highway includes some of the highest and most serious crash rates on Cape Cod as well as some severe traffic congestion problems. The Cape Cod Commission was assigned the task of developing recommendations to improve safety and traffic flow as part of the Commission's transportation planning contract with the Massachusetts Highway Department (which has jurisdiction for the highway.)
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