SHAWANO CO, WI (WTAQ-WSAU) – Work on one of the deadliest intersections in Shawano County will begin today with the goal of improving traffic safety.
Governor Tony Evers has approved a $3 million project to reconfigure the intersection of County Road U and Wisconsin Highway 29 near Gresham.
“This week you’re gonna expect lane closures to start. As we build the crossovers for the project, the south leg of County [Road] U is closed,” said WisDOT Project Manager Eric Gwidt. “The lane closures will come down for the July 4th weekend, but the south leg of [County Road] U will stay closed. After the July 4th holiday, the lane closures will be back up.”
The County Road U intersection will be reconstructed into a J-turn, which allows vehicles to make a left turn from the highway through a specially designed median.
“It reduces the amount of conflict points at the intersection. So instead of having everybody trying to fit in one little area in the median, you get rid of certain conflicts that can be dangerous at an intersection like that.,” Gwidt told WTAQ News. “What’s more substantial when it comes to the construction end of it, is there’s a hill that’s east of the intersection – we’re going to take that hill on Highway 29 and shave it down a little bit to improve visibility from that direction…The combination of shaving that hill down and the J-turns makes it a better, safer intersection.”
Gwidt adds that it reduces conflict points to lessen the potential for more serious side-impact crashes.
Work on the project is expected to last until this November.
WisDOT officials say in the five-year period between 2013-2017 there were a total of 15 crashes at the intersection; three of which lead to deaths and nine causing injuries.
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