Move toward consistency causes traffic snafu at Chase and Hayden

POST FALLS — Habits can be tough to break — even with advanced warnings that those instances are about to come up again.

The Post Falls Highway District on Monday moved stop signs at the intersection of Chase Road and Hayden Avenue north of Post Falls from Hayden to Chase to make it consistent with other intersections on Hayden.

The move drew concerns from district patrons later in the day that an accident is waiting to happen because drivers are used to stopping on Hayden at the intersection and not Chase.

District Chairman Lynn Humphreys said on Tuesday he hadn't heard of any accidents since the sign change, "but I'm sure there have been near-misses."

"When patrons of the district are calling and saying that you ought to watch this and we have our own personnel watching, it's definitely a concern," he said.

Humphreys said the district is aware drivers' habits can be hard to break after a change has been made. That's why the district posted electronic readerboards, flashing lights and larger-than-normal stop signs to educate and warn drivers at the intersection.

Based on traffic since the change, however, that wasn't enough, prompting the district to reach out to The Press to notify drivers.

Humphreys said the district voted to make the change after an independent firm recommended it so the intersection is consistent with others on Hayden that make that road unrestricted.

"We believed that this was in the best interest of the traveling public and for safety, but now we need to educate the public," he said. "We wanted to bring consistency to the roadway."

With another Rathdrum Prairie intersection notorious for accidents — Pleasantview Road and Prairie Avenue — Humphreys said the district plans to hold a public input meeting on a date to be determined later this spring or summer about more improvements that can be made to enhance safety.

The district has applied rumble strips, advance warning signs and oversized stop signs and has reduced the speed to 35 mph there to reduce serious accidents.

"We're currently reviewing our options on what more to do there," Humphreys said.

Humphreys said making the intersection signalized or constructing a roundabout that would be wide enough to handle trucks in the industrial area are possibilities.

"Roundabouts are not my favorite, but it's a proven fact that they do slow down traffic and there's a much less fatality rate than an intersection that's controlled," he said.

Separating the roads with an overpass would likely be too costly and take a minimum of six to eight years to receive federal funding.