DENVER (KDVR) — After noticing a few crashes and an unusual layout at a well-traveled intersection on South Broadway, the FOX31 Problem Solvers looked into what’s going on there.
The intersection of South Broadway and West Kentucky Avenue, near Interstate 25, is where FOX31 cameras on Monday captured several drivers blowing straight through a red light.
The Problem Solvers witnessed a few crashes there over the last few months and noticed how difficult it is to see one of the traffic signals.
The area has two sets of lights when traveling northbound on South Broadway: The first set was green, but the second set — just several feet away but barely visible — was red.
This is something city officials say was done intentionally. The Denver Department of Trasnportation and Infrastructure, or DOTI, sent this statement:
The traffic signals near Broadway and Kentucky were installed in 2006 and have built-in sensors to respond independently to oncoming traffic and pedestrians as opposed to our traffic signals that run on a timer (similar to what we have in downtown Denver). This is meant to keep traffic flowing through those areas. The brightness of the signals themselves are intentional as well and are common throughout Denver as an added safety feature — especially when you have two sets of lights that close to each other. This is meant to prevent the driver from bypassing a red light directly in front of them by mistaking it for a green light at the next intersection. As standard practice, DOTI re-evaluates issues raised by the public every three years or when major development or roadway changes occur. The best way to report concerns is by calling 311.
Denver Department of Trasnportation and Infrastructure
Because DOTI recommended calling 311 to report concerns, the Problem Solvers did just that on Monday afternoon to help ensure something is done at this intersection to prevent a major traffic crash from happening there.
Crashes at South Broadway and Kentucky
The Problem Solvers and the FOX31 Data Desk helped analyze numbers from the Denver Police Department that show the number of crashes at the intersection over the past five years.
There have been at least 95 reported crashes there in that timeframe. That’s about two a month.
Two of those crashes ended up with three people seriously hurt.
If you see or know of any troubling traffic intersections, contact the FOX31 Problem Solvers.