Residents of Walker Lake have been concerned about accessing their neighborhoods from Highway 95 without any secure turn lanes to work with. Early last week, Walker Lake resident Charlie Morris described a hazardous issue with traffic turning off Highway 95 onto Cottonwood Drive, and the same concerns also apply to Ahab Drive 350 feet south of the area on Highway 95.
“Everyone has to stop for you when you have to turn into those neighborhoods and when you’re driving at high speeds there’s nowhere for them to go,” says Walker Lake resident Pat Mooney. He believes that the tractor-trailers are especially dangerous, as they (and other drivers) race through town and create their own ‘passing lane’ on the gravel shoulder of the road, narrowly missing the left-turning traffic and throwing up gravel as they speed past.
“When they repaved the road they put turn lanes on the other end of town, but not here,” Mooney adds. “When the NHP does put a police car out here, people tend to slow down but they don’t keep a car out here that often.”
Nevada Department of Transportation PIO Meg Ragonese said that they have not received anything about this issue through their formal customer service system, but it’s exactly the kind of thing they look for in how to best keep Nevada roads safe. Now that NDOT is aware of the issue, it will begin formally conducting speed studies and an intersection control analysis in that area (specifically near Cottonwood Drive and Ahab) that will be taking place in the coming months.
During its speed study, it will be evaluating a proper speed limit in the area but wants to make residents aware that posting a speed limit too low can create a speed deferential that be more dangerous if it causes people to slow down too abruptly and result in a rear-end collision.
The NHP North Command West center could not be reached for comment, but Sergeant Hixon who oversees the Nevada State Police Highway Patrol Tonopah District sent this statement:
“The Nevada State Police Highway Patrol is committed to the safety of those who commute on Nevada’s roadways, and we have Troopers working diligently to preserve public safety. Speeding is one of the top contributing factors to serious and fatal crashes in this state. We continue to ask drivers to slow down, focus on the road, and make sure that everyone in the vehicle is properly restrained so that they and others can arrive at their destinations safely.”
During NDOT’s evaluation in coming months, if it determines if a change in the speed limit is needed in that area, then it will put in a request to change out its speed limit signs.
“Every single car that goes by is a potential accident, and there’s plenty of room to add a right turn lane. It’s really hazardous and fixable; it can’t be that hard to add a couple of hundred feet of turn lane. Even the school bus has to come to a dead stop to turn into those neighborhoods,” Mooney says.
At the same time NDOT will be conducting its speed studies, it will also be performing a separate intersection evaluation to determine the need and practicality for potential turn lanes.
“We appreciate this request, and above that speed and intersection control studies we will also be finalizing a statewide speed management action plan that outlines safety strategies for statewide and local roads,” Ragonese says.
“Speeding and impairment have been the top two factors in fatalities; always be attendant to your speed and we will continue to do what we can to foster a safe driving experience,” Ragonese adds.
The Nevada Department of Transportation welcomes any concerns or issues and urges people to give their feedback about Nevada roads by contacting its customer service hotline at 775-888-7000 or emailing info@dot.nv.gov. Going through this process ensures that the request will get properly logged in its system and directed to the appropriate department.
