OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) – The state department of transportation has installed new road signs at two Northeast Wisconsin roundabouts in order to help cut back on wrong-way drivers.
The blinking wrong way signs were installed in 1-41 roundabout ramps at W. Mason St. in Green Bay and W. 9th Ave. in Oshkosh.
Officials say these two locations have had repeated wrong-way driver reports dating back to 2017.
Scott Nelson, DOT Safety Engineer, says one reason for wrong-way drivers is confusion, however most often it is because of impaired driving.
The DOT has been working with local law enforcement since 2017 to get wrong way warnings out on highway message boards as soon as they are reported to give drivers a heads up.
Nelson offered some tips if you approach a wrong-way driver on the highway:
“The big thing is just to drive defensively and again just trying to pull over to the shoulder. We generally recommend you stay on the right side of the highway because if someone is intoxicated, generally they will be coming at you on the right side, thinking it’s not one-way directional traffic,” Nelson says. “So when that message board comes on, at the same time, if you feel comfortable, you can exit off and wait ten minutes, usually events have a pretty short duration before they get stopped or self-correct.”
For the past two years, Northeast Wisconsin has seen an average of 30 confirmed reports of wrong-drivers per year, according to the DOT.
The DOT will continue to track wrong-way drivers to assess if more blinking signs are needed at other locations.
