Traffic signals to be removed at two Cape intersections

Motorists traveling along South Sprigg Street may notice a slight change at one intersection.

Work has begun on the removal of the traffic signal at the intersection at Morgan Oak Street and installation of stop signs -- a process that soon will happen at an Independence Street intersection as well.

Plans already were in place to phase out the Morgan Oak Street intersection stoplight, but work was accelerated earlier this month when an accident damaged a traffic signal pole at the intersection of Sprigg and Independence streets. The city was able to relocate a traffic signal pole from Morgan Oak to repair the damage and quickly get signals working properly again.

Initial plans to phase out the Morgan Oak intersection came as a result of the city identifying seven locations where traffic signals did not have battery power backups. Cape Girardeau city engineer Casey Brunke said staff decided first to evaluate all the signals on the list before paying for the backup equipment at each light.

The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices -- published by the Federal Highway Administration to define, among other traffic items, the standards used by road managers nationwide to install and maintain traffic control devices on all public streets -- outlines nine specific factors Brunke said were considered for each intersection.

Data for two key warrants -- traffic volume and crash frequency in the area -- indicated a traffic signal no longer was necessary at the Morgan Oak intersection.

"Our public works personnel performed traffic counts at that intersection and traffic counts came back showing they were lower than [outlined by the manual]," Brunke said. "Another issue is accidents, so we pulled accident data, and accident data did not warrant a traffic signal at that area."

The data shows a change in the city's traffic patterns over the years. For the Morgan Oak intersection in particular, the shift came as a result of the opening of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in 2003, which was built just south of the old Mississippi River bridge.

"Because the area had changed, the nature of the intersection was not what it was 10 years ago," Brunke said.

Eastbound traffic on Morgan Oak will encounter a temporary stop sign, and westbound traffic will encounter a flashing red signal. This means Sprigg at Morgan Oak is operating as a "cross traffic does not stop" intersection. Brunke said soon the signal will be covered until crews can take it down. The intersection will then have stop signs for east- and westbound Morgan Oak, but not on Sprigg Street.

Another change motorists can anticipate in the coming months is the phasing out of the traffic signal at Independence and Pacific streets. Like the Morgan Oak intersection, it was studied among the list of lights without battery backups. Brunke said traffic volume and crash frequency levels similarly indicated that area did not require a signal.

srinehart@semissourian.com

388-3641

Pertinent address:

Sprigg Street and Morgan Oak Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Independence Street and Pacific Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo.