ODOT NEWS RELEASE: Coquille motorists invited to test drive new highway safety improvements

ODOT NEWS RELEASE:

July 29, 2021

COQUILLE - ODOT has a plan to improve safety on Oregon Highway 42 east of Coquille. We want to know what you think.

A new pilot program, which goes into effect next month, will reduce the number of travel lanes and add a center turn lane along the four-mile stretch of Oregon 42 from the North Adams Street/Mill Street intersection to Finley Loop.

The existing traffic pattern includes two lanes in each direction but provides no dedicated space for left turns. Drivers planning to turn left are forced to wait in a travel lane for a gap in oncoming traffic, putting them at risk of rear-end crashes.

Under the new layout, there will still be two eastbound lanes in this area, but westbound traffic will be reduced to a single lane. A center turn lane will provide space for vehicles making left turns. Most shoulders will remain about 9-10 feet wide.

Coquille motorists will have a chance to drive the new pattern and share their opinions with ODOT. Depending on the public response, the changes could be made permanent next spring.

There are several safety benefits to the new layout:

• Reducing westbound traffic to a single lane will help to slow vehicles as they approach Coquille.
• A center turn lane will help reduce crashes that often occur when a vehicle attempts to turn left from a regular travel lane.
• Maintaining two eastbound lanes provides a safe passing opportunity for vehicles as they leave the city.

From 2010 to 2019, 49 crashes were reported in this area. The addition of a center turn lane is expected to result in a 29 percent reduction in all crash types, according to ODOT traffic analysts.

Prime contractor Knife River Materials is scheduled to begin paving this segment of Oregon 42 the first week of August. Paving work will require daytime lane closures, though there will usually be one lane open in both directions most of the time. All lanes are expected to be open at night and on weekends.

The paving work and striping improvements are part of the $6.5 million Oregon 42: Cedar Point to Finley Loop project, which paves more than five miles of the highway and makes several other improvements.

More project information is available at www.Coquille42.com. Comments can be submitted in several formats. Send emails to [email protected], call or text 541-817-5200, or send a letter to: Oregon Department of Transportation, 3500 NW Stewart Parkway, Roseburg, OR 97470.

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PROJECT WEBSITE: https://www.oregon.gov/odot/projects/pages/project-details.aspx?project=20710

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