Trouble Shooter: Dangerous Curve in Cowiche
Cowiche residents concerned over dangerous curve on Summitview Road
After watching a car drive into their neighbors' home, a Yakima county couple concerned about a dangerous curve in the road in their neighborhood contacts our Trouble Shooter. Find out what county officials plan to do to make that section of road safer.
Jerry Kilpatrick of Cowiche says a weekend accident where a car ran into the bedroom of a home on the 15-thousand block of Summitview Road could have been much worse.
"They didn't have the bed up against the wall, and there was nobody in the bed. If somebody had been in the bed against that they would have badly injured or killed," says Kilpatrick.
Kilpatrick says he's complained to the county to do something for a very long time, without much luck. He says many drivers ignore the 35 mile an hour speed limit as they approach the curve.
"For about 30 years we have tried to get the county to take some action on the corner," he says.
But Yakima County says there's a good reason why nothing has been done yet.
The county says an area must have three accidents a year for three years in order to qualify for a road safety improvement project. The county also says this part of Summitview Road does not have that track record for accidents.
"This curve we're looking at here, there's been four accidents over the last three years, so we don't meet the threshold for safety," says Kent McHenry of Yakima County Public Services.
The county says it plans to widen this portion of summitview road, to include shoulders on either side, making it a bit safer for drivers.
"Someone does, you know, not handle the curve exactly correctly, then they get a chance to recover and still stay on the road.
Jerry Kilpatrick says the county should do something about the corner instead,
"This is an accident prone corner, the county needs to fix the corner, and protect both the vehicles and the residents," he says.
The county hopes to start the road widening project later this summer.
If there's a problem in your neighborhood, the Trouble Shooter wants to know about it. Give us a call at 1-877-9-TVNEWS or 509-453-0351.
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