Improving one of the region’s “deadliest highways” also involves driver education, police enforcement
The driver of this Honda SUV was killed in a head-on collision on Highway 199. An open house is scheduled for Tuesday to present ideas to help make the highway safer. [Photo from OSP]
Illinois Valley residents and others can weigh in Tuesday on plans to improve Redwood Highway.
A final open house for the Highway 199 Corridor Plan is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 26 at the Boys and Girl Club, 24353 Redwood Highway, Kerby.
The public will have the opportunity to examine potential improvements, both small and large-scale, and voice any concerns they may have about specific sections of the highway between Grants Pass and the California border.
The corridor plan and a related community engagement committee continue an effort started in 2019 when road fatalities were rising. ODOT data shows there were 417 reported crashes between 2014 and 2019. Of those, 41 were fatal and serious injury crashes.
Also known as the Redwood Highway, 199 is one of the deadliest in the state. Head-on crashes and other accidents make headlines every year as people navigate intersections and driveways on the freeway or run off and crash into trees.
They are often listed on state and regional “most dangerous” or “deadliest” road lists, although ODOT officials say many of the crashes are caused by human error and the road is not necessarily more dangerous than other similarly traveled roads. 199 has not seen many improvements or changes in recent decades despite increased use.
Thomas Guevara, ODOT project manager, said Tuesday’s meeting would have information from previous open houses, including public input and work done by consultants, for the public to see.
Guevara said many things were examined to determine the cause of an increase in accident rates in recent years and how to implement possible remedies.
“It’s one of those things that yes, there are a lot of accidents, but there’s also a lot of traffic. I think on this road, what we saw was that a lot of the accidents have been recent, in the last five or ten years. And we wondered why. Compared to other state highways that go up the coast (freeways similar to 199), it wasn’t actually the worst, but it was still pretty high on the list,” Guevara said.
“What we know for sure is that it is representative of a high-speed highway that has a lot of traffic and a combination of different types of traffic. … There has been a lot of new development along the freeway in the last 30 years.”
He added: “People live right on the freeway and they use the freeway. There are conflicts with the people who live on the freeway, with the high-speed road and truck traffic that uses the freeway. We have people walking on the freeway, cycling. … It’s a main street for some of these communities, and they forget it’s also a regional road.”
Guevara said plans were being drawn up to improve physical security, as well as implement education and increase law enforcement.
“We’re going to discuss what kind of enforcement would be needed to complement these physical improvements and the educational program. How do you improve enforcement when you have limited funds? Those are all questions we’re going to address,” he added.
A big factor in some of the crashes: A portion of the road has no margin for error, ODOT officials said.
“You’re limited to making changes in certain areas because large portions of the freeway are between a mountain and a river, and there are no wide shoulders, and there’s nowhere to put wide sidewalks,” Guevara said.
“The reason shoulders become important on a high-speed freeway is that you can’t avoid another driver if they’re going to come right at you. We saw that with some of the head-on crashes. That’s where the education program comes in. There there are certain parts of this road where you have to use defensive driving because there is simply no recovery area.”
Potential traffic calming measures and improvements being considered include more signage, turn lanes at certain intersections (so drivers aren’t sitting in a high-speed travel lane waiting to turn left), striping of noise and high medians.
Guevara said that while changes and improvements are warranted, Redwood Highway’s reputation as “lethal” is likely due in part to its proximity to small communities.
“If you compare accidents, I-5 has a lot more accidents than 199. What it comes down to, from a statistical standpoint, is that the more people use the freeway, the higher the percentage of accidents,” he said.
“And I think because people live on this highway, they see the crashes in their front yards. On I-5, you don’t really see it unless you’re on I-5. If you’re part of these communities, you often know the casualties. You’re seeing the fatalities and it seems to hit home a lot more.”
Guevara said ODOT planning staff and consultant Kittelson and Associates will present results from past open houses and review future design treatments at Tuesday’s meeting. The public input process will remain open until August 30 for review and additional comments.
The public can view the virtual open house at:
Corridor plan input and suggestions can be sent in writing to: Thomas Guevara, ODOT Senior Transportation Project Manager, 3500 NW Stewart Parkway, Roseburg OR 97470. You can also email Thomas.Guevara @ODOT.Oregon.Gov.
Contact reporter Buffy Pollock at 541-776-8784 or bpollock@rosebudmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @orwritergal
