Cape to prohibit left turns at dangerous intersection

A boost in traffic along Gordonville Road -- no doubt prompted by the masses that have been flocking to the new Chick-fil-A -- has the Cape Girardeau City Council poised to prohibit left turns at a nearby intersection it considers dangerous.

At the urging of city staff, the council has already given a first-round nod to amend the traffic ordinances to bar left turns from Gordonville Road onto Mount Auburn Road.

Since Chick-fil-A opened Sept. 8, five motor vehicle accidents have involved drivers making left turns there, said Kelly Green, the city's director of Development Services. Before the restaurant opened, a traffic study shows that only one accident had taken place there since Jan. 1.

"We were seeing a major increase in traffic and some accidents," Green said. "It had come to our attention that we might want to take a look at it. We've determined it would probably be best if there were no left turns there."

Eleven days after the opening of the restaurant, city manager Scott Meyer established an emergency ban on left turns until the council could consider the motion. Only one sign has gone up near the intersection so far and several motorists could be seen Friday making left turns anyway.

If the council approves the ordinance at its Dec. 5 meeting, Green said, more signs would go up and the move would become permanent.

Green's theory is that the restaurant is pulling motorists from Interstate 55 who aren't as familiar with the traffic patterns as local drivers.

Council member Kathy Swan represents Ward 5, which includes that intersection. On Friday, Swan called the move a good one and added she expects the council will give final approval.

"It's really tough, even before the traffic picked up, to make a left turn there," she said. "It can be really dangerous. There's a lot going on at that intersection, so many different ways drivers are trying to go."

The traffic seemed particularly busy on Friday afternoon, with many people using a post-Thanksgiving day off to shop.

Euley Simmington, who lives in the county, drove through the intersection to get to the nearby Saint Francis Medical Center. He said he avoids making left turns onto Mount Auburn Road because he's long known it's not safe.

"You end up just sitting there forever anyway," he said. "Taking out that left turn is probably the best thing."

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Gordonville Road and Mount Auburn Road, Cape Girardeau, MO