Residents fight for new markings on Tippecanoe County intersection

TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI) - In the quiet countryside of Tippecanoe County there is a problem some residents are willing to make a lot of noise about. It's the intersection at 500 North and 225 West just outside West Lafayette.

Sherry Underwood is a 20-year resident of the area. She said drivers are becoming more careless at the intersection.

"Myself, my children, and many of my clients and friends in the surrounding area have had situations where we've been nearly plowed off the road because people do not even yield to the stop sign," Underwood said.

Underwood said she has been calling the Tippecanoe County Highway Department for more than a year. She is requesting new markings at the intersection.

"My biggest concern is safety for all those who travel this road," Underwood said. "I have asked for rumble strips to be put on at the very least. I can't fathom that is asking that much."

Highway Department Executive Director Opal Kuhl said an investigation of the intersection was completed in May 2012 and reviewed in September. Engineers look at the accident history and the volume of cars traveling on both roads.

In the case of 500 North and 225 West the traffic volume was too small for any changes.

"[You need] 210 cars an hour [on one road] and 140 cars an hour [on the other]," Kuhl said. "You need to sustain that for eight hours. We did counts for three days and if you look at any 24-hour stretch it didn't meet the count for any hour."

The investigation must show the intersection sees five wrecks a year.

"This [intersection] had six accidents in three years," Kuhl said.

Kuhl plans to investigate the intersection again this Spring. Underwood plans to keep fighting until something is done.