The Wentzville, Missouri public works department recently decided to enhance safety at an intersection on Wentzville Parkway. The through road is a four-lane collector, and is crossed by a two lane minor road.
While there have been no major accidents at the intersection, there have been problems with drivers on the two lane road missing the stop signs at night. The public works examined a number of different safety enhancements, including installing a full, signalized intersection, or installing Carmanah’s R247 solar powered 24-hour flashing beacon. However, given the location and the nature of the problem, they felt that simply drawing drivers’ attention to the stop signs at night would be sufficient.
The public works department installed new “stop sign ahead” signs about 100 yards in advance of the stop signs at Wentzville Parkway, and then installed a yellow R601 solar LED hazard marker lights to the top of each sign. The marker lights were placed in a semicircular housing bracket at the top of the sign to direct the light output towards oncoming drivers.
The installation of R601 units in the Village of Forsyth, Illinois was very similar. However, the public works department in that location elected to install red R601 solar LED hazard marker lights to the top of each stop sign. Again, the directional brackets were used control the beam angle to ensure the lights were viewable only to oncoming traffic.
Both Forsyth and Wentzville appreciated the rugged, sealed design of the Carmanah’s marker lights, as well as the fact that they are solar powered and offer long battery autonomy. Running power to these locations was not an option, and while both agencies looked at Carmanah’s R247, they felt that they did not require a 12″ lens or 24-hour functionality. The R601 proved to be an extremely cost effective solution for nighttime sign visibility enhancement.
Guidance on this case gratefully acknowledged to Dave Kralemann of Wentzville Missouri Public Works and Pat Gibbs of Brown Traffic Products, Carmanah’s Midwestern Distribution Partner.
