County approves Toyota-funded inspection for 100 East intersection; public raises ongoing traffic-safety concerns

The Gibson County Commissioners approved a construction inspection agreement for the County Road 100 East intersection upgrade, an improvement funded by Toyota that the county said will be inspected by United Consulting to coordinate with nearby work on Tulip Tree Drive.

"Completion date, July 19," an agency official said while describing the schedule and the intention to complete signal loops and paving work during a vacation shutdown to minimize disruption. The board voted to approve the construction inspection agreement by voice vote.

During the public-comment period, resident Jeremy Gansman raised concerns about traffic at 600 South and the 175/100 area and questioned whether adding stop signs would address downstream congestion. The county highway agency official and staff described traffic studies and site-distance checks showing some intersections did not meet warrants for stop signs.

The agency official said mobile radar speed signs produced a modest reduction in vehicle speeds in prior deployments, citing a recorded decrease of about 6 miles per hour in observed averages. "The radar signs are out there... I was able to log into my radar signs, pull the data, put it in the spreadsheet," the official said, describing how the devices inform future measures.

Staff also noted that striping and other design elements are guided by traffic-volume thresholds; the official said 350 South records roughly 1,800 vehicles per day, below commonly cited thresholds for striping (about 3,000 vehicles per day). For larger changes, the official discussed a potential federal-aid project concept that would likely be about 80% federal funding and 20% county match and could be five years out.

Commissioners said they want staff to continue data collection and to explore longer-term solutions that could include federal aid, while balancing near-term measures such as radar signs and localized fixes.