YORK - When the state installed a traffic light at the intersection of Route 1, Beech Ridge and Southside Road, many in town believed that their wishes had finally been granted.
What many didn't realize, as York resident and former legislator Mary Andrews points out, was that the light was only temporary - put in place to manage traffic while Route 91 was under construction, forcing motorists to be detoured onto Beech Ridge Road.
For local public safety officials, legislators and residents of the Beech Ridge and Southside neighborhoods, however, efforts have been underway for about 14 years to have the Maine Department of Transportation redesign the intersection and add a permanent traffic light to improve safety at the site.
Andrews, during her time as a state representative, submitted a bill to do just that. However, she was told the intersection was not a high enough priority in terms of the number of personal injury accidents occurring there. That data is used to determine the order in which projects on state roads like Route 1 will be considered.
York Rep. Windol Weaver, R-York, is also a proponent of a new plan for the intersection. Weaver recently sent a letter to Maine Department of Transportation Commissioner David A. Cole, citing Andrews' earlier bill and the continued hazardous conditions at the site.
"Seeking to ensure my constituents voices are heard, I write to ask that the situation at the intersection ... be reassessed, so as to ensure the safety and welfare of those motorists utilizing this portion of roadway," Weaver wrote. "If any other means of eluding future accidents is plausible, I am certain that the citizens of York would be open to alternative suggestions."
Political pressure will not hurt the case, according to Andrews and Weaver, who are urging residents to contact the appropriate state officials and voice their opinions on the need for a traffic light at the location by sending their letters to Steve Landry, 16 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0016.
For his part, York Police Chief Doug Bracy said there is no question this intersection remains a cause for concern.
"It purely comes down to a safety issue," Bracy said, adding he continues to support a redesign of the intersection and the addition of a traffic signal. Bracy said he believes the town would be willing to work with the state in making this a priority, a sentiment also voiced at recent Board of Selectmen meetings.
With increased traffic on Route 1, especially with a particularly rainy summer that saw many of the town's tourists and summer residents heading to Kittery's outlet malls to shop when the weather was too wet for the beach, Bracy said the problems of safety and traffic delays at that Route 1 location have not been going away.
Andrews said she is as convinced as ever that a properly designed intersection, with a traffic light, is a necessity.
"I've always been a strong proponent for it," she said, "and it's still a priority."
While the MDOT has contended that the intersection does not meet the criteria in terms of the number of serious accidents occurring there, Andrews, Bracy and Weaver each spoke of the fatal accident several years ago that claimed the life of a York teen as reason enough to warrant the change.
And, Andrews said, she believes it is only due to the cautious nature of local commuters, who go out of their way to avoid accidents, that there have not been more serious crashes there. She explained that many Beech Ridge and Southside residents have told her they fear crossing the traffic onto Route 1 to such an extent that they will turn right when merging onto the busy roadway, despite needing to go in the opposite direction, and travel along Route 1 until they find a place where they feel safe to turn around.
As Andrews put it, "It's a real horror show for these residents trying to get out onto the road."
The temporary light is expected to be removed once the Route 91 roadwork is complete and the Beech Ridge detour comes to an end. Meanwhile, Weaver and Andrews hope that if the state hears from enough local residents, a timeline for an MDOT study of intersection improvements could be moved up to begin addressing the issue.
