DALLAS – N.C. Department of Transportation crews will convert a Gaston County intersection to an all-way stop next week.
Crews will install stop signs with 24-hour flashing beacons and painted lines for the all-way stop at Ike Lynch Road and Miles Road on Tuesday, Oct. 21, weather permitting.
Signs will be installed before the intersection alerting motorists to the new traffic pattern. Crews installed message boards in the area earlier in October.
This intersection’s crash rate is higher than the state’s average, prompting transportation officials to convert it to an all-way stop. NCDOT crash data shows all-way stops reduce total crashes by 55%, fatal and serious injury crashes by 92% and frontal-impact crashes with minor injuries by 72%.
Drivers approaching an all-way stop should follow these rules:
- The first vehicle to the intersection has the right of way ahead of any vehicle that has not yet arrived;
- When two or more vehicles reach an intersection at the same time, the vehicle to the right has the right of way;
- The vehicle with the right of way may move straight ahead or, if legal and after signaling, turn left or right;
- When two facing vehicles approach an intersection at the same time, both drivers can move straight ahead and turn right. If one driver is going straight while the other wants to turn left, the driver who wants to turn left must yield. The driver who is traveling straight ahead has the right of way; and
- Even with the right of way, remember to use the appropriate turn signals and be careful to avoid hitting other vehicles and/or pedestrians.
For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.