The in basket: Road Warrior readers have nominated two more intersections for the flashing yellow left-turn arrows that Kitsap County has deployed in many places.
Bob Hoag says, “I think the blinking yellow left turn signals are great especially on Bucklin Hill Road in Silverdale.
However, it seems the county forgot one location. With the new Greaves Way connection to Waaga Way, and the significant increase in traffic on eastbound Anderson Hill Road, left turns onto Old Frontier Road (which feeds into Greaves Way) are piling up. As a result, I was very surprised that the county didn’t add a blinking left-turn signal at the intersection on Anderson Hill Road and Old Frontier Road.
Warren Nadeau feels the same way about the signal on Highway 3 between Bremerton National Airport and the Olympic View Industrial Area.
“Cars trying to make a left turn into the airport or a left turn into the industrial area must sit with high speed traffic passing them for some time before the light changes,” Warren said. “Many times there are large gaps in traffic that would allow left turns to be made without stopping high speed traffic on the highway. It seems that it would be much safer and more efficient than having left turn traffic interfering with the highway traffic.
“To anyone trying to make a left turn for one or two minutes while at a dead stop, with full speed traffic passing within inches in both directions (head on and from behind), it is downright frightening. You have no momentum to avoid a collision should someone move into your lane from behind or head on,” he said.
The out basket: There is no immediate hope for a yellow flasher at either location.
Jeff Shea, Kitsap County’s traffic engineer said of the intersection Bob mentions, “It’s a budget issue. The signals currently configured with flashing yellow lights were upgraded with new construction, or the upgrade was funded with development mitigation funds. We do not have budget available to pay for the upgraded equipment necessary to implement this technology at other intersections. We continue to look for opportunities to widen the use of flashing yellow light technology, as it’s been very well received by motorists.”
The airport signal is owned by the state, which has a policy that once a signal has been found to require one level of traffic control (such as a red arrow left-turn signal) it won’t go to a lesser degree of control without a significant improvement in the alignment of the intersection. That would prohibit either a yellow flashing left turn signal at the Highway 3 signal or that technology’s predecessor, a sign allowing left turns against a solid green ball light after yielding to all conflicting traffic.
