It won’t help….trust me.
The most sensational news outlet in town, WCSC Live 5 News, did a segment on an intersection near where I used to live. The residents in the area are stating the intersection of U.S. Hwy 176 and Davenport Street is dangerous. While I’ll admit it’s not one of the best intersections, the traffic light they think will solve their problems will only add more.
Just last week, 4 cars smashed into each other with an impact so intense, one car was left sandwiched between two others.
There were only three. And it was the result of a drunk driver who turned in front of someone off of Hwy 176 onto Davenport. He was 22 years old, if I remember correctly and was his license was suspended due to a prior DUI. Ironically, he was pulling into WalMart so a friend could pick him up.
Part of the problem is traffic on 176. Residents say cars are going way too fast, leaving people making a left at the intersection to wait.
Some speed, some don’t. Honestly, I observe that most people slow to 45MPH at the Devon Forest light, about a 1/2 mile prior to that intersection. It’s aggravating, as it’s rated for 55 at that area (prior to Davenport). It doesn’t help that drivers on Devon Blvd pull out in front of you (same at Myers…they pause, waiting for you to get close and then pull out. Bastards).
Some residents say the traffic in the neighborhood has increased since the Wal-Mart went in. The solution, they say, is a traffic signal for the intersection before somebody is seriously hurt or killed in an accident.
The WalMart was in several years before the subdivision was started, I distinctly remember shopping there when it opened, 2000-ish I think. Persimmon Hill was started in 2002 I think. It also predates the McDonalds and the stripmall behind McDonalds, as well as the stripmall at that corner.
The State Department of Transportation is looking into the problem. They’re studying the amount traffic and wrecks to see if a traffic light on that intersection is a good idea. Their study should be released in about 2 to 3 weeks.
A study was done in 2003 or 2004. SCDOT stated it wasn’t busy enough to warrant a light then, and I am not sure if it is now. It’s possible, perhaps. The earlier study was done after another car accident where a driver on Davenport pulled out in front of someone on Hwy 176. Squeaky wheel gets the grease.
Chris’s personal and educated opinion (I did drive it every day) is that while it may make the intersection safer, it will not make it easier to get out. Watching the video clip, the reporter states that a car waited a minute. A whole minute. Um, a traffic light will likely make cars on Davenport wait for at least that long. Traffic will back up onto Davenport, blocking the McDonalds entrance and the opposing entrance to WalMart’s parking lot, which will create another backup. You will have drivers that think they are being friendly and let others out, which tends to lead to more accidents. I will agree that when you turn left it is difficult to see cars coming east on Hwy 176, and will also state I’ve sat there for a while too when I lived in Persimmon Hill from 2003-2006. Yeah it sucks, but a light will only be more of a pain in the ass. Statistically, there’ve been maybe only three or four major accidents there in the last four or five years. Not that bad considering the volume.