Thursday, September 2, 2010

A report out Thursday by the Kansas Department of Transportation indicates K-254 Highway is safer than most roads like it around the state. The report was spurred after several fatality accidents along the high-speed highway in recent weeks.

KDOT looked at four different intersections along the highway, according to spokesman Steve Swartz.

"We considered rumble strips, but they won't achieve what we're looking for," he explained. "When we looked at the full spectrum of accidents over the last few years, we found that drivers had already stopped at the sign."

Swartz said the vast majority of crashes at the K-254 intersections in Sedgwick and Butler Counties involve drivers who - do - stop at the stop signs, but then pull out in front of oncoming traffic.

Nearby resident Darrel Fillmore agreed.

"I've seen driver after driver... I meet them on the road and they have a telephone up to their ear or they're doing something else," Fillmore said. "You need to have your thoughts and your mind controlling your driving and not something else."

KDOT has already replaced the existing stop signs with larger ones. New 'stop ahead' signs have also been placed ahead of the intersections. Swartz says KDOT will look to see what these improvements have done to help traffic safety in the future and if more needs to be done, they'll consider more changes.

At all four intersections KDOT reviewed, the report found that the number of crashes was below the statewide average on similar roadways. The report looked at the K-254 intersections with Webb Road, Rock Road and Greenwich Road in Sedgwick County. It also included Ohio Street in Butler County.