There will be better signage on S. Elm (Highway 4) near the south edge of Jefferson after a fatal accident at the intersection with Greenewood Road.
Jefferson chief of police Dave Morlan told the Jefferson city council Tuesday night that the Iowa Department of Transportation has agreed to place a solar-powered amber flasher on the sign marking the blind intersection for southbound drivers. The council expects to take action at its Dec. 10 meeting to accept responsibility for upkeep and maintenance of the sign and light.
Lois Case, 71, of Jefferson died Nov. 6 of injuries sustained in a three vehicle accident two days earlier at that intersection. Case lived in the Greenewood apartments. She was northbound and attempted to turn left onto Greenewood Road. She turned into the path of a southbound vehicle; her vehicle was then pushed into the path of another northbound vehicle.
Morlan said that friends and relatives of Case contacted him after the accident inquiring about signage at the intersection. He referred them to the DOT. Morlan provided the DOT with a copy of the accident report, and the DOT then offered to purchase the amber flasher.
City engineer John Milligan said there is an optical illusion at that intersection. “As you come out of Greenewood, you can see the cars. What you don’t see is the pavement. So as you look to the north, you see green grass. If you look very closely, you can see the cars coming south. So by everybody’s standards, it’s a safe intersection, but it’s not,” he said. He noted that many of the drivers there are seniors who live in the Greenewood apartments and/or eat at the congregate meal site. They tend to be shorter and not to drive tall vehicles (like pickup trucks) that provide better sight distance.
Milligan said he has talked with DOT engineers many times about that intersection. “This is a step forward for them. They just haven’t been willing to do anything before this,” he said.
“It’s just too bad it takes this kind of accident to jar somebody loose,” council member Bill Figenshaw said.
Morlan said that in looking at accident reports over time, there have been only a few accidents at that intersection, “but the ones we’ve had have been pretty bad.”
Morlan was also instructed to ask the DOT for blind intersection signage and a light for northbound traffic as well.
