VANCOUVER, Wash. — In this edition of Drive Me Crazy, we’re talking about a crowded and dangerous stretch of SR-500: Between Northeast 42nd and 54th avenues.
In five years, those two intersections have tallied nearly 400 crashes, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. Officials say they’ve now got a solution. Drivers said it can’t come soon enough.
“I avoid it anymore. During rush hours it’s ridiculous,” said a driver named Dave.
“You can wait for three or four lights until you can get through one light,” said another driver named Barbara.
Traffic lights on SR-500 at the Falk Road/42nd Avenue intersection, and Stapleton Road/54th Avenue will be removed. Also, access between those roads and SR-500 will become right-turn only as a permanent center barrier gets installed.
WSDOT says the changes will help flow and decrease crashes by up to 70 percent. Officials say nearly 60,000 cars drive through the two intersections per day. Removing the signals will speed up flow. Eliminating the left turns will greatly reduce crashes, and the backups those cause, officials said.
But it also means some local traffic will have to find a different route, permanently. Drivers will no longer be able turn left onto SR-500, so those drivers will either have to find an alternate route or pull a lengthy U-turn out to Andresen or St. Johns.
“I don’t know if that’s the answer though,” said Barbara.
“It’s already an inconvenience. So you know, any improvement is going to be a plus,” said Dave.
Surveyors are in the area now. Work could begin as early as the end of the month. When that happens, there will be a full weekend closure of SR-500 while crews remove lights.
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