Starke County Highway Superintendent Rik Ritzler asked the commissioners to consider some intersection improvements at two locations.
Ritzler reminded the commissioners that he asked Laura Slusher from Purdue LTAP earlier this year to make suggestions on traffic pattern changes at County Roads 200 N. and 700 E. and 100 E. and 500 S., due to an increase in traffic accidents and other concerns.
Ritzler said that a four-way stop was not recommended at 200 N. and 700 E. because of low traffic count. Also, drivers familiar with the intersection could get into an accident because of the change in traffic flow there. Ritzler said other work was done at the intersection to improve conditions, as suggested.
“We cut back the vegetation a little bit and we added ‘cross traffic does not stop’ signs,” explained Ritzler. “They’ve been up about three months and there have been no accidents in that time. We’re also adding stop bars on 700 E. With that being said, I did not agree with her traffic counts because they had traffic counts of 400 vehicles. We put up one of our devices there and we came up with about 650 vehicles a day.”
Ritzler said stop bars could be installed on the road along with stop ahead signs which may help alert drivers which the commissioners unanimously approved. Ritzler said that change will be evaluated over the next six months to see if it helps.
At 100 E. and 500 S., Ritzler said he asked if property owners could cut back farm fields and trees about 100 feet, but they were not agreeable to that. He highly recommended a four-way stop at that intersection which was unanimously approved by the commissioners.
