Residents complain of dozens of near misses after College Station 4-way becomes 2-way stop

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – Dozens of near collisions occurred at a busy intersection in College Station over the span of two days.

The intersection of Deacon Drive and General Parkway used to be a four-way street, but this Wednesday it became a two-way street. The city has installed large light signs to make drivers aware of this new change in both directions, but that may not be enough.

The city has installed huge light signs to make motorists aware of this new change in both... — The city has installed huge light signs to make motorists aware of this new change in both directions of travel.(kbtx)

The change was prompted by complaints from local residents, but residents say many people did not notice, causing dozens of near misses and one accident in the past two days.

A traffic engineer from the City of College Station told KBTX what the new traffic pattern should look like.

“Both approaches to General Parkway on either side are still observing a controlled situation. While Deacon Drive no longer has a stop sign in either direction,” said Michael Holmes, traffic engineer for College Station Public Works.

The intersection of Deacon Drive and General Parkway used to be a four-way stop, but this... — The intersection of Deacon Drive and General Parkway used to be a 4-way stop, but this Wednesday it became a 2-way stop.(kbtx)

12-year-old College Station resident Robert Marcavage said he avoids that intersection because of all the close calls.

“I thought there was going to be an accident very soon, and the next morning it turned out there had been an accident there,” Marcavage complained.

A reported accident at the intersection of Deacon Drive and General Parkway Thursday, October 31st.(kbtx)

The intersection of Deacon Drive and General Parkway is a hot spot for near collisions, and Marcavage insisted he’s not taking any chances.

“If they were going to stop, make them stop completely. Or if they went, just let them go. (I) I just didn’t want to have an accident myself,” Marcavage explains.

The city received multiple reports from residents and Union Pacific Railroad that the four-way stop was causing traffic disruptions, which is when the city began its investigation.

“We did traffic counts and an analysis of the stop order in all directions and decided that a stop in both directions would be better for traffic flow and to avoid creating traffic jams on the main road and on the railway line,” reasoned Holmes.

The College Station City Council approved the change last Thursday, Oct. 24, and the removal of two of the stop signs took place Wednesday of this week.

“The order to shut down all roads was a bit redundant in this case as there are already safety concerns with traffic backing onto the railway line,” Holmes added. “It’s just a transition point. A new traffic control device has been implemented, and it is new for drivers.”

The city advises motorists to use caution when crossing intersections and read all road signs. It’s for your own safety.

This has been prompted by complaints from residents, but residents say many people did not notice this, causing dozens of near collisions and one accident in two days.