SOUTHEAST MO : Drivers bring up Highway 412 safety concerns following head-on collision on Tuesday, November 15th 2016

The Missouri Department of Transportation are addressing drivers’ safety concerns about a divided highway.

On Wednesday, KAIT spoke with drivers after a head-on-crash happened on Highway 412 in Greene County on Tuesday.

The sheriff’s office confirmed the driver traveled in the wrong lane of the divided highway coming from Missouri.

According to officials, the problem area is located at the divided highway, where Mr. T’s gas station sits near the Arkansas/Missouri border.

“We travel through here a lot when we go to Nashville and there’s a problem here,” Vickie Strickland, a Jonesboro woman, said.

Turning west from Mr. T’s onto the divided highway, some drivers said they turn onto oncoming traffic.

“When you’re pulling out and you are going back towards Jonesboro, it’s really confusing because of the access road,” Strickland said. “You look at it as the oncoming traffic. Then you think, okay, I’m going to get over that and then you’re in another lane. Next thing you know, you’re going the wrong way on the wrong way on the wrong lane of the main highway.”

Strickland drives an RV and actually has driven down the wrong lane but was able to avoid a collision.

Although appropriate signs are in place, Strickland believes MoDOT needs to address the concerns before someone gets killed.

“You know you can’t stop that bus on a dime,” she said. “If we were to not stop immediately, I’m sure it wouldn't be good for the other person at all. It would be a fatality for sure and something you would never get over.”

Luke Porter, MoDOT’s traffic specialist said there have been nine crashes in the past five years at the exact problem spot.

Porter plans to look at the spot on Thursday to review if any changes need to be made.

He said the transportation department is always looking for recommendations.

Anyone in Southeast Missouri with highway concerns can contact them at 573-472-5333.

Source :
Drivers bring up Highway 412 safety concerns following head-on collision