Councilors seek DOT review, cite multiple crashes at US-150 intersection near Dollar Tree

Council members and the police chief raised repeated accidents at the intersection near Dollar Tree and Ferguson Ace Hardware on U.S. 150 and asked the North Carolina Department of Transportation to study traffic changes, including lower speed limits, turning lanes and a possible roundabout.

Why it matters: Multiple crashes at the same intersection can indicate design or speed issues that affect driver safety and can qualify an area for state or federal safety money.

Councilman Hovis said Division of Transportation staff appeared likely to accept a prior council recommendation to lower the speed limit in the area and that officials were also examining turning lanes. He and Police Chief Wofford said there was a recent serious crash involving a vehicle pulling out of the Dollar Tree parking lot into westbound traffic on U.S. 150. Council members said there have been multiple accidents at that location and described at least two crashes that were fatal.

Hovis said he emailed the DOT engineer after speaking with Chief Wofford and that DOT is looking at several options. He and other council members discussed the possibility of installing a roundabout that would slow traffic through the cluster of access points, acknowledging that drivers sometimes accelerate when a light turns green.

Council members noted previous work through the region’s Metropolitan Planning Organization and said that federal safety funds could be sought if DOT’s initial review does not produce a solution. No formal vote was taken; the council asked staff and council members to pursue DOT review and to continue coordinating with police and MPO representatives.

Ending: Council members said they will continue to pursue engineering review with DOT and explore funding options through the MPO if necessary.