TWO I-55 INTERSECTIONS TOP CITY POLICE ACCIDENT SPOTS

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The annexation of a stretch of Interstate 55 into Cape Girardeau in August 1989 shuffled up the city's top 10 accident spots in 1990, and added some new ones.

The top accident spots last year were on I-55 at two locations: Route K and Kingshighway. The locations ranked first and second, respectively.

A third I-55 location, that between Missouri Route 74 and Nash Road, ranked ninth in accidents last year.

The top 10 accident locations were disclosed by Cape Girardeau Police in the department's annual report released last week.

Thirty-one accidents took place on I-55 at Route K, the report shows, while 24 occurred on I-55 at Kingshighway. The top accident location in 1990 was the scene of 13 more wrecks than the top accident site in 1989.

The location with the third-most wrecks in 1990 was Kingshighway at William Street, where 22 accidents occurred.

The other top 10 spots, in descending order based on the number of accidents, were:

Broadway, between Park Avenue and West End Boulevard. The location routinely on the list because it is a popular street for area youths to "cruise" was the scene of 19 accidents. In 1989, the location had the third-most accidents, 16.

Independence at Leming Lane, with 18 accidents. The spot did not rank among the top 10 spots in 1989.

William Street, between Plaza Way and Sheridan Drive, which also had 18 accidents. This spot ranked ninth in 1989.

Independence, between Caruthers Avenue and Sunset Boulevard. The spot, with 17 accidents last year, ranked 10th a year earlier.

The top accident location in 1989, Kingshighway between Independence and William streets, had 16 accidents last year, ranking it eighth. In 1989, 18 accidents occurred along that section of Kingshighway.

The third interstate location, I-55 between Route 74 and Nash Road, had 14 accidents in 1990.

Morgan Oak Street, between Frederick and Sprigg streets, ranked 10th last year, with 13 accidents. The location was not among the top 10 accident sites in 1989.

The officer in charge of the Cape Girardeau Police Department's traffic division, Sgt. Al Moore, said the top 10 accident locations for 1990 didn't surprise him. When the city annexed the interstate, he said, it was known that there would be some accidents in that area.

A study done before the annexation estimated that the action would result in the city handling about 100 more accidents a year, he said. The Missouri State Highway Patrol did the study, Moore said, based on past accidents.

That estimate came true in 1990 and then some. Cape Police Sgt. Carl Kinnison said 122 accidents happened along that stretch of the interstate. Those accidents, he said, were the primary reason why there were 140 more street accidents last year than in 1989.

Street accidents in 1990 totaled 1,904, up from 1,764 in 1989.

"One thing I might say," Moore said, "is most of the accidents especially at Broadway are rear-end collisions. It's the fact that most people aren't paying attention...."

Most of the accidents on Independence, between Caruthers and Sunset, and on Morgan Oak, between Frederick and Sprigg, are also rear-end collisions, he said. He advised people to watch their driving and keep their vehicles at a safe distance from those in front of them.

A total of 571 accidents occurred last year on private property, a drop of 66 from a year earlier. Total accidents street and private property accidents combined increased from 2,401 in 1989 to 2,475 last year.

"Our high-accident day has not changed in the last five years, nor has the time" added Moore. "It's basically Friday between 2 and 4 p.m. Everybody's ... getting off work or leaving school and getting in a rush to take off for the weekend."

The city had two fatal accidents in 1990, as it has had each year since 1987. Only one fatal accident occurred in 1986.

There were 232 injury accidents in 1990 compared to 187 for the previous year.

Moore cited three reasons for the increase in injury accidents. A large part of the increase is due to the annexation of the interstate and the fact that vehicles travel at higher speeds on such highways. More injuries are going to occur in higher-speed accidents, said Moore.

Secondly, Moore said he believes a mix of smaller-size cars with larger ones was also a factor.

"See we've still got the trend right now of large cars and small cars both on the road," he said. "When you get a combination of a large car hitting one of these small, light ones, you have a better potential for injury there."

As for the third reason, Moore said: "I think people have gotten more self-conscious about the possibility of having injuries and going to seek medical treatment. They just want to check and make sure they don't have any injuries."

The annual report's listing of injury accidents doesn't necessarily mean an injury occurred in each accident.

Moore said an accident is considered an injury accident anytime anyone seeks medical attention. That includes situations where it is subsequently determined that persons were not injured.