MOULTRIE COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) - The Illinois Department of Transportation announced Wednesday it's converting the intersection of IL 32 and Bruce Findlay Road into a 4-way stop, after a report identified safety concerns.
There have been more than two dozen crashes at the intersection in the last decade, including a crash that killed two people in September.
It is a pretty dangerous intersection," driver Josh Goodrich told WAND. "I have seen and heard about a lot of wrecks, and I've seen semis in the ditches and different cars in the ditch."
"It's sometimes hard to see, and you don't know if people are gonna stop," added driver Rick Trachsel. "It's not real clear what some of the other drivers are gonna do... They might be in the lane that looks like they're gonna go straight, but they don't. Maybe they're gonna turn, maybe they're gonna do something else."
A Road Safety Assessment Report (RSA) released by IDOT gave the intersection grades of "F" in the areas of Intersection Control and Geometrics, and grades of "C" in the areas of education, enforcement, pavement markings and signage. The report ended with several suggestions, including converting the intersection to a 4-way stop.
Several leaders in the state applauded the 4-way stop decision.
“I would like to thank IDOT for listening to the local community on this. This was extremely important to me that someone outside the state of Illinois look at this, and IDOT agreed at my request to reach out to the federal highway authority to get their input on this intersection.,” said State Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet). “We are all pleased that IDOT is going to proceed with a 4-way stop at the intersection.”
“The residents of Moultrie County have known for several years that Howie’s intersection south of Sullivan was dangerous. Unfortunately it took a double fatal accident to get the state’s attention,” said Moultrie County Board Chairman Dave McCabe. “IDOT conducted an audit of the intersection at the request of the Moultrie County Board and the citizens of the county. The audit concluded that a properly constructed 4-way stop at the intersection could provide the needed safety improvement and the Moultrie County Board concurs with that conclusion.”
A 2010 deadly crash happened after an eastbound intoxicated driver failed to stop or slow down at the stop sign.
In 2019, a deadly crashed killed 56-year-old Lori Samples and 5-year-old Tyson Mendoza. The crash involved a school bus that was carrying 11 elementary school children, including 5-year-old Mendoza, and a maroon Ford Escape driven by Samples. After stopping at the CR 800 stop sign, Samples' vehicle entered the intersection, where the front of the school bus slammed into her SUV's driver's side door. Just over two months later, another serious crash happened at the same intersection, sending one person to the hospital.
Since the 2019 crash, the Moultrie County has added double stop signs and advance warning signs.
Read the full RSA report below:
