For years, the intersection of Ga. 365 and Howard Road has seen dozens of serious traffic accidents, some of them fatal.
The accidents continued even after the installation of a traffic signal in 2012 as the area around the intersection grew, first with the construction of the J.A. Walters Family YMCA and then with the relocation of Lanier Technical College to land on the other side.
But if the Georgia Department of Transportation has its way, the deadly intersection will become much safe. A project currently in the concept phase would dramatically alter the way cars move in and out of that area.
The project essentially would eliminate the intersection by closing the median. Drivers on White Sulphur Road could still access Lanier Tech via an overpass that would be constructed south of the intersection. Drivers would cross Ga. 365 on the bridge, then tie into Lanier Tech Drive by way of a roundabout.
Drivers on White Sulphur and Howard roads could still access Ga. 365 at the old intersection, but they would only be allowed to make right turns onto the highway. No traffic would cross the road at that intersection.
"It'll will be a big improvement to this area on 365," Kelvin H. Mullins, the Georgia Department of Transportation's district engineer for Northeast Georgia, said.
A number of the accidents at the intersection are the result of drivers trying to cross Ga. 365 and misjudging the speed of oncoming traffic. The intersection is the first traffic signal after Interstate 985 ends and changes to Ga. 365, and officials have said many drivers are still driving at interstate speeds, even though the speed limit is lower.
The installation of the traffic signal was supposed to help. But accidents continued.
The new DOT plan would eliminate any cross traffic at the intersection, meaning drivers could only turn right onto or off of 365. Drivers who turned onto Ga. 365 but wanted to go in the other direction would have to go a short way up the road and make a U-turn, DOT Commissioner Russell McMurry said.
"The U-turn is actually the most safe maneuver there is, and that's been documented by many studies," McMurry said. "If you think about it intuitively, when you make a U-turn, you are making sure the coast is clear and that when you make that U-turn, you can get turned and accelerate."
But nothing at the intersection will change anytime soon. The DOT isn't expected to award a construction contract until 2022.
The project was presented last week as part of the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce's annual transportation forum.
