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Don’t blame Howland intersection for crashes

DEAR EDITOR:

As Saturday’s article about the crash at state Route 82 and Howland Wilson Road reminded us, ODOT is planning a million-dollar upgrade to this intersection. Before spending all that money and making people circumnavigate the township to get to where they’re going, shouldn’t we be demanding better traffic law enforcement on this stretch of road?

I find myself exiting Route 11 onto Route 82 several times a week, slowing on the ramp to adjust my speed to match the 55 mph limit on Route 82, sometimes to the dismay of drivers behind me. Soon, I see cars roaring past me as though the drivers consider themselves too important to worry about such things as speed limits and fortunate enough that nothing bad will ever result from their behavior. What I never see is any law enforcement vehicle monitoring their speed or compliance with the traffic signal.

I don’t know how fast Thomas Poole was driving last Saturday, but it was obviously too fast. I don’t know how he managed to miss seeing the clearly visible red light ahead of him (although I would not be surprised if we learn he was using a cellphone). What seems obvious is that if he had slowed down and paid attention, he would be alive today. Instead, he became the author of his own misfortune, as well as that of the three people he injured on his way out of this world.

Drivers are not going to slow down and pay attention to this intersection if they feel like there are no consequences for failing to do so. Making this stretch of Route 82, and its intersection with Howland Wilson Road a target enforcement area might make a few more drivers at least think — and maybe reduce the accident rate a bit.

GEORGE R. ANNOS

Mineral Ridge

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