County Seeks Action by TDOT to Make Dangerous Intersection Safer

County Mayor Mike Foster says the intersection at Highway 70 and Highway 83 near Kilgore’s Restaurant is dangerous and several wrecks have occurred there in recent months. So he will ask the county commission Monday night to join him in requesting that TDOT consider installing caution lights there.
“We’ve talked to the guy in Chattanooga who is over engineering and asked that they look at it. There have been about twelve wrecks there. Three of them required extrication and several of them had to be life flighted. We’re asking first that they do the engineering study. Really what it amounts to is we would like to see a caution light, where it would be a caution light for Highway 70 and flashing red lights on Highway 83 on either side. At least, we would like to see installed those small ripples on the road to alert you (motorists) that something (intersection) is coming up and some signs that say ‘Dangerous Intersection Ahead’. There is a sign there that has like a red centerpiece that says ‘Ahead’ but it doesn’t say stop. Butch Agee (of TDOT) has been helpful and so have the people in Chattanooga so hopefully we’ll get this done”.
Foster says he and the commission may also request a street light be installed to better illuminate the intersection of Highway 70 and Dry Creek Road.
In addition, Foster says the county commission may request the Tennessee Highway Patrol to recommend a safe speed limit for Holiday Haven Road and the Old Sparta Highway as requested by local residents there. “We’ve had several local residents that have called about the speed on those roads. I think the Old Sparta Road used to be a 35 mph speed limit. They’re asking for the highway patrol to go determine what a safe speed is for both of these roads and to recommend to the commission that speed limits be established there. These are county roads.”