State Says Traffic Signal Not Needed At Hilltop

Darren Doyle
​​Several residents over the past couple of years have voiced concerns and opinions for the need of a traffic signal at the junction of KY HWY 259 N and HWY 70 (Morgantown Rd) at Riverhill near the Dollar Store entrance.

Over a year ago, the Edmonson County Fiscal Court asked the KY Transportation Cabinet to research the possibility of the need for a traffic signal at the location, whether in the form of a three-light signal, or a caution signal. 

Three representatives from the department attended Fiscal Court yesterday and reported on what was found. They said that over the past year, the location has been watched and studied by state officials to see if the number of crashes or mishaps at the location could be helped or prevented by the addition of a safety device of some nature there.

They reported that as a result of their findings, no signal nor device was necessary according to the state's requirements. 

They did note, that during the construction of the northbound left turning lane to HWY 70 from 259, the Dollar Store was in it's original location, several hundred feet above the intersection. It was after construction was completed that the Dollar Store built a new location at the intersection, causing confusion for some drivers headed south. There is no left hand turning lane going into the Dollar Store.

Still think the number of accidents there are too high? According to statistics from 2015, there were a total of 235 reported accidents in Edmonson County. A total of 189 of those were accidents with property damage (75%). There were 44 accidents with injuries (19%) and only 2 accidents had fatalities (.08%).

Out of the total number of 235 county accidents, only 10 of them occurred at the intersection (4%) and only one of those was an accident with an injury. So with only 4% of total county accidents at the location and less than one half of a percent of the total being accidents with injuries, it's not difficult to understand the state's decision.

"Any time you have a concentrated number of vehicles in one location you'll see a higher number of accidents there," said Sheriff Shane Doyle. "Most accidents in these areas have lower number of injuries because the speeds are lower due to the traffic congestion."

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