R-CUT design a controversial change to traffic near Talking Rock
Newly opened traffic lanes are meeting and, in some cases, baffling motorists at the intersection of Antioch Church Road and Highway 515 just south of the Gilmer/Pickens County line.
Under Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) construction since January, the Reduced Conflict U-Turn or “R-CUT” lanes were put in to minimize accidents at the busy intersection near the town of Talking Rock, said Grant Waldrop, engineer for GDOT’s northwest Georgia district.
More than 60 accidents, including three fatalities, have occurred at the intersection during the past 12 years, Waldrop noted in a letter to media outlets earlier this year.
“The project has been in the making since 2005 when the need for this was first identified in the Pickens County Transportation Study. Subsequent studies revealed an alarming statistic. The intersection had the fifth-highest collision rate in Pickens County at that time. The number of crashes has continued to increase with 2018 being the worst year on record,” he added.
Motorists were previously able to make a straight shot across the highway from either side of Antioch Church Road, as well as cross over the north and southbound highway lanes to make left turns from the median opening. A concrete barrier now prevents those modes of travel.
Drivers turning off Antioch Church Road now have to make a right turn, proceed up the highway and make a U-turn if they want to go in the opposite direction. Drivers already headed north or south on Highway 515 can still make left turns in turn lanes near the intersection.
“Only drivers seeking to turn left or go straight across SR 515 from Antioch Church Road will need to travel the additional distance. All other movements will be allowed to continue as they currently exist. Drivers seeking to turn left or go straight will travel no more than one-third of a mile and will only need to judge the gap, speed and distance of vehicles traveling in one direction at a time. The additional 900 feet north and south of the median is minimal when considering the safety benefit,” Waldrop explained.
Waldrop referenced some of the other R-CUT lanes that have been installed in Georgia including Highway 515 and Walmart driveway/Blairsville Airport in Union County, Highway 113 and Wood Bridge Road in Bartow County and Highway 1 Loop and Blacks Bluff Road in Floyd County.
“R-CUTs have been installed at countless locations nationwide and federal studies have shown a reduction in crashes at those locations by 28 to 44 percent. They have also shown a reduction in the number of fatal crashes by more than half,” he noted. “There is no doubt that an R-CUT will enhance the safety of the intersection of SR 515 and Antioch Church Road.”
The roadway revamp also includes “loons,” or widened shoulder areas, built to accommodate tractor-trailers and large trucks making U-turns.
“Big trucks will be able to utilize the U-turn 900 feet north of the median opening, which has been designed for a big truck’s turning radius. However, it is preferable that big trucks stay on SR 136 and utilize the overpass just north of Talking Rock,” Waldrop advised.
New road signs, orange barrels and restrictive tape have warned motorists about the new construction for months. The barrels and tape have since been removed and all portions of the new lanes are now open for use.
“The intersection is open to traffic. However, some construction activities are (still) ongoing,” Waldrop noted.
Controversial crossing
The R-CUT lanes, also called J-turn lanes or superstreet intersections, were installed after much public input from area residents and business owners, including two town hall meetings held in Jasper and Talking Rock.
“Some residents were in support of the project as proposed. Others opposed this particular design and expressed their concerns about it. GDOT listened to all sides and is appreciative of their feedback, especially the input of State Rep. Rick Jasperse, of Georgia House District 11. Rep. Jasperse made us aware of the concerns of some individuals in the community over the impact of the project if constructed,” Waldrop noted.
At a 2016 town hall meeting posted online by the KnowPickens website, Talking Rock Mayor Randy Banks said the small town’s business owners are concerned that limiting access to Antioch Church Road will result in a negative economic impact.
“A concern they (business owners) have is you might choke them out. I don’t think you would, or I would, stop at a store where you couldn’t get back out onto 515 easily. If you don’t make it convenient for them, they’re not going to stop at this town. That’s what people are telling me,” Banks told GDOT personnel who attended that meeting.
Jasper Mayor Johnny Weaver has also been critical of GDOT’s decision to go ahead with the project.
At the 2016 town hall meeting, Weaver said the City of Jasper, where the intersection is located inside Jasper’s corporate area, would pay for the electricity to accommodate a traffic light if one could be installed there.
“Sometimes, with a traffic light, you don’t know the lives you save (by stopping at one). That would be the first notice for people coming south who drive through Jasper at high rates of speed at 4 or 5 in the morning because they think they can blow through town. The life they’ll save right there, they wont even know it,” Weaver told those in attendance.
“It would actually be an economic boon to have a traffic light there instead of basically doing the essence of an overpass without ramps,” he added, referring to how traffic lights might affect Talking Rock businesses.
Waldrop said installation of traffic lights at a highway intersection depends on the amount of traffic measured on the side street, which, in this case, is Antioch Church Road. The general rule is 150 vehicles on the side street for eight hours a day, he explained.
“GDOT evaluated multiple other options to improve safety at this location, including the installation of a traffic light,” Waldrop added. “The intersection did not meet the minimum traffic volume requirements contained in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Installation of a Traffic Signal. Additionally, SR 515 at this intersection is a high-speed roadway and special consideration needs to be given when you would be requiring high-speed traffic to come to a complete stop.”
In an interview with the Pickens County Progress earlier this year, Weaver said public input unfavorable of the R-CUT design “fell on deaf ears.”
“We talked to them until we were blue in the face,” he noted then.
Weaver said he’s driven in the new lanes and still doesn’t think they’re any safer than what was already there.
“That design is not made for that particular location on 515. They’ve made a bad situation worse,” he added. “The road there at Talking Rock is where you have the highest rate of speed between Blue Ridge and Canton. They’ve even got that road slanted at a degree where, when you go past that curb, you don’t slide off the road because they know (people are) going to be going so fast. I hope our (state) representatives traveling that road will see the futility of this effort and that it needs to be changed.”