WILSON – Almost a dozen intersections across Highway Division 4 will be converted into all-way stops to improve safety.
The N.C. Department of Transportation awarded this week a $580,000 contract to Highway Traffic Control Inc. of Durham to install the all-ways stops at the following intersections:
- Washington Avenue at 11th Street in Weldon, Halifax County
- N.C. 48 at N.C. 903, in Halifax County
- U.S. 64 Alternate at N.C. 42 in Edgecombe County
- N.C. 42 at Colonial Road in Edgecombe County
- Swift Creek School Road at N.C. 4/N.C. 48 in Nash County
- Old Bailey Highway at Macedonia Road in Nash County
- N.C. 581 at Strickland Road in Nash County
- Old Carriage Road at West Mount Drive in Nash County
- N.C. 97 at N.C. 231 in Nash County
- N.C. 33 at Watson Seed Farm Road in Nash County
- Wiggins Mill Road at Radford Road in Wilson County
The contractor can begin between August and October, and once started, will have eight months to complete the improvements. The contractor has the flexibility to make the changes in any order, but typically will do done on Wednesdays. The contractor will be required to notify the public with signs before the change is made.
Drivers who encounter these intersections on the day of installation should slow down, be cautious and follow directions from flaggers directing traffic.
The department's traffic engineers evaluated the intersections and determined they warranted all-way stops to reduce the risk of crashes. The typical crash pattern involved drivers who had failed to yield crashing into vehicles that did not have to stop at the intersection.
An all-way installation reduces the intersection's crashes by 68%, according to NCDOT data. More information, including how to navigate an all-way stop, can be found online.