One person was killed and another seriously injured in an afternoon wreck at Mike Padgett Highway and Bennock Mill Road.
Traffic is backed up at the intersection as Richmond County authorities and Georgia State Patrol work the two-vehicle wreck, according to a Richmond County Sheriff’s Office press release.
Names of those involved have not yet been released. One driver was taken to a local hospital.
Thought when they put the light up at the loop that it would help but nothing's changed. They still drive like they are at the Darlington Speedway.
If a driver turns in front of another car, is it the fault of the highway?
Not at all allhans. Are you under the impression that someone is blaming the highway for this wreck?
How many more must die before this death trap for a road is finally fixed? Yes I know GA DOT "started" the widening process 3 years ago, but a snail moves faster, and there have been dozens of serious wrecks, and several deaths in those 3 years.
In the last year we have had 4 Deaths that I know of:
1 @ 4-club rd.,
2+ @ Bennock Mill,
1 @ Hwy 56/ Old Waynesboro rd. near the Citgo.
I hate to say it but I may have missed a few .
Remember this is all because of a GA DOT quick fix, to squeeze in extra lanes instead of widening the road years ago. Only Federal Paper and the McBean Plant Vogel exit areas were privileged enough to rate the common safety of exit and turn lanes for some reason.
When will GA DOT be held to account and/or pushed into assigning the project a higher priority?
nonoc, the drivers could also slow down a little.
What needs fixing? What does the DOT need to do to fix the highway? I see Allhans' point as it seems the highway is blamed as the problem vs the people driving on it.
I'm not being sarcastic or faceitous; I want to understand the factual issues.
(ETA) On my side of town Washington Rd is an issue. They widened it, and from just past Walmart all the way to Halali Farm Rd it is 4 lane without a center (suicide) lane. What the *&% were they thinking? There are people turning west at several places starting at Ace Hardware all the way to Knob Hill Farm Rd.; and people turning left off of Washington at several places all the way to Knob Hill as well. Then you have people headed east turning into self storage, nursery, Woodbridge, etc.
It will take someone getting killed to spur action.
you (Sheriff Roundtree) just patrol the flipping road with real Sheriff's Deputies with ticket books. Forget a bunch of "Operation Thunder" crap stopping people minding their own business heading home from a night out. Target these resources where lives can be saved. Almost all of these fatality accidents involve logging or other 18 wheelers. They drive that road like Mad Max trying to escape the compound with a load of gas.
Rocket Science this ain't, folks.
Just slow down the traffic. I advise 24/7 running radar and backups on radio to pull them over.
Or just continue to watch people die. Roundtree's choice!
take a former rural hwy that "had" a center turn lane, that has hundreds of driveways that "had" a shoulder to ease off the road to turn into their driveways or businesses. Then decide the road needs to be 4 lanes 2 each way and just re-stripe the road and pave over the shoulders and eliminate the private turn off points. Drop the center turn lane and now you have 2 lanes each way with no divider or safety buffer in between North South travel lanes. To turn left into a driveway or a business, you have to come to dead stop in the left Fast Lane and pray you don't get rear-ended and pushed into oncoming traffic by the person behind you.
Or like happens frequently, not the guy behind you, but the 5 or 10 behind him that don't see him change lanes to avoid you stopped to turn. Suddenly one of the line is locking up brakes changing lanes and we have chain reaction with a pile up.
Now add to it hundreds of Logging trucks every day, rushing to drop a load and run back and get another.
To get a visual pull up Google Maps and zoom in on just the section
between 4H Club Rd and Goshen Road. Using Google go down the road level and drive it...
Then there is the scenario that got a lady killed and her kids seriously injured. She pulled out of her community (Shoreline area) seeing there was an opening. As she entered the highway, some of the oncoming traffic changed lanes closing up the opening. As I understand it she was trapped in the roadway and hit by a logging truck.
Yesterday I mention I likely missed a few traffic deaths, this accident was 1 of them, plus the Country Town Entrance deaths and the Goshen Rd death.
Also imagine a school bus stopped, picking up kids on dark mornings and dropping off kids in the afternoons.
These examples are why Highway 56 has had the MOST traffic DEATHS of any Richmond Co. roadway hands down.
Poor design and patch jobs have contributed to the many traffic deaths. Even an AC article last year bore this out.
Almost forgot.
Get down around Apple Valley and you have idiots running across the 4+ lanes to avoid walking 60 feet to a cross walk.
Why can't some understand there are MANY deaths on this highway.....who cares if some don't believe it....
The road --the speed-the big logging trucks...read Rebels post...he has it right...RTREE the ball is in your court now,,,WHATCHA gonna do....
Between speeders and lane changers on Bobby Jones and Hwy 56 they could fund the Sheriiff's Department in perpetuity.
Since taking office, less than 3 months ago, Sheriff Roundtree has devoted more resources to traffic enforcement, as he should since almost 4 persons each month died on our roadways last year in traffic fatalities. Although no Sheriff or law enforcement agency will every correct all of the problems of society, that number has been lowered at this time to 1 per month – pretty good achievement for just taking office.
As for your request of increased enforcement in various areas, he has done just that – the traffic division is on Highway 56 and many other areas daily. Operation Thunder has provided more troopers and others units from across the state to assist at no charge to the local taxpayers and they have also greatly increased traffic enforcement with road checks generally only a couple of days out of the week because that is just but one way to help solve problems – and it is helping since they have netted almost 200 DUI’s and persons who had their children in cars without car seats. In addition, if you follow the stats online, they have arrested many felons, taken guns off of the street, apprehended an armed robbery suspect and have taken many actual criminals off of our street.
On top of all of that, the RCSO has also delved into social media and continually post driving tips, traffic safety reminders, information on traffic laws, etc. as well as using the actual real media to give proper attention to the driving problems throughout Richmond County, with South Augusta receiving a lot of additional support as requested by many. Also, they are using speed warning signs in an effort to help remind people of their speed and those signs have been in use on Highway 56 quite often.
The actual responsibility lies with those who drive on our roadways to slow down, look both ways, take the necessary precautions when driving and make sure everything on their car is working properly. Additionally, DOT does need to take care of the needed roadway changes on roads such as Highway 56 to improve their safety.
The Sheriff has greatly increased educational efforts, warnings, the use of technology, and traffic enforcement all over the county and currently, fatalities are down 75%.
You are so correct Bodhisattva but in my opinion the danger issue with Hwy 56 can not be corrected even with mass patroling. A few occassions there has been monitoring but only slows down the traffic momentarily and then the checkered flag is raised and the speedway is back in full force.
rational thought trumps emotion, I have to disagree with you. I have lived in South Augusta for 25 years and travel Hwy 56 DAILY and until one day last week, for the very first time I saw a speed warning sign so your comment that it is used quite often is not correct. As for the traffic division being on Hwy 56 daily, that may be possible but the problem isn't really from Bobby Jones to Phinizey Road. They have to monitor from Old Waynesboro Road to Bennock Mill Road. This long stretch of hwy with only 2 traffic lights is a gateway to hell with people traveling 65 to 75 mph, switching lanes erratically, and "trying to beat the red lights" at Goshen and 56 Loop.
You can say things are improving but I live it every day and I have to disagree, it is getting worse.
Me thinks you are in the position to make a difference...listen to ICL...she is right......we are NOT blaming we just want more done...
You explained it very clearly. In your opinion, what fixes would have prevented the fatalities you know of personally?
I apologize, I should have said quite often over the past two weeks because that is when they got the speed sign as a reminder to slow people down. And, I am not personally saying things are improving, I am saying stats clearly show improvement and fatalities have decreased by 75% thus far this year. However, without all of us doing our best to drive the speed limit and pay close attention to what we are doing when driving, not much will improve in the long run. Life is too precious to lose it when driving.
I use this highway myself as I live off of Bennock Mill Rd. Other than the whole highway having turning lanes, I believe it is the drivers fault and not the highway. I have seen cars speeding everyday, and this includes big trucks of all kinds. Yes, i agree most of the accidents involve log trucks and as a former professional driver myself, I can see a connection. Without knowing the particulars of this latest accident, we can't really point fingers at whose fault it was. Was the pickup speeding and the car driver didn't realize just how fast he was going when she pulled out?? Or was he driving at the speed limit and she wasn't paying attention, or on the phone, or maybe she had car trouble and something happened to the car when she pulled out?? Who knows what happened at this point. Not us and I think the fault lays with those involved somewhere, not the highway. That intersection has a lefthand turning lane and also a righthand turning lane. To sum it up, people in a whole need to slow down and pay lots, lots more attention to their driving. It's called defensive driving and as my 25 yrs of driving professionally experience tells me, only then will these accidents stop happening. Btw, the driver who died is my neighbor next door and I feel very very sorry for her and her family, no matter whose fault it is!
Just keep an officer or 2 permanently on 56 and Bobby Jones. It'll pay for itself many times over.
I too use this highway everyday as I live off of Bennock Mill Rd. It is my opinion as a former professional driver that you can not blame this wreck on the design of the highway. No one knows who was to blame for this horrible wreck than the drivers involved themselves. There is a lefthand turning lane at this intersection, so that could not be at fault. Was the pickup speeding and the car driver misjudged how fast he was going when she pulled out?? Was the pickup driving at the posted speed limit and the car driver inattentive for some reason? Maybe the car driver had car trouble when she started to accelerate across the highway, who knows? At this point we can only assume and everyone knows what happens when we do that. What does need to be done is for everyone driving, cars and trucks alike, is to slow down and pay lots, lots more attention to their driving and to all the things going on around them as they go down the highway. It's called defensive driving and in my 25 yrs of professional driving, this I believe will be the only thing to help this highway. Hopefully, if just half of the people driving in Augusta were to slow down and watch out for others, we could reduce the amount of accidents, I'm wishfull thinking, but who knows. Btw, the driver of the car, the fatality is my next door neighbor. I feel so, so sorry for her shortlived life and sorry for the family she left behind. :(
Some Suggestions
1. drop the speed to 40 mph between Tobacco rd and Bennock Mill
2. put in Left hand turn lanes for cross streets.
2a. Limit cross streets and crossing areas.
3. Strict Logging trucks to Hwy 56 LOOP (Spur)
4. Add in Left hand turn lanes in the Castle Pines area
5. add a deceleration lanes on both sides between 4H Club and Bennock Mill to give residence a few chance
6. Add in a Stop Light at Brown Rd & Hwy 56.
7. Add STROBE Lights to the RED Lilghts.
8. Goshen Rd. Add pre warming light, the stoplight view coming from Federal Paper is blocked by a hill.
9. GADOT go out an physically EYE-BALL the skid marks between Bobby Jones and Bennock Mill and see where numerous skid marks are then figure out why and a solution.
10. start ticketing Jay walkers in the Apple valley area (YDC included) and those running across the street from the Ga Driver License office to Mickey D's.
11. In deceleration lanes to North and South Barton Roads apartments
12. Time the traffic lights to a speed to induce drivers to obey the 40-45 MPH speed limit.
13. Put up Radar Warning trailers with cameras a few days each month. Study the videos, pick out 5 or 10 habitual offenders and make a BIG Example of them every month.
14. put a safety divider 3' high concrete wal) up with limited cross over access between Tobacco rd. & Bennock Mil Road. This will limit the points that people can cross the hwy with vehicles to areas deemed safest. Right now there is open crossings from US-25/Hwy 56 to Bennock Mil Road (about 8 miles)
These are a few.
An many of which the GA DOT AGREED with 3.5 years ago. but has not laid 1 inch of roadway yet.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2013. All Rights Reserved.
