Description
When traveling SOUTH on Wake Forest Rd, there are two left turn lanes which provide entry to the inner beltline (S Wake Forest Rd, cross under beltline, turn left to travel on ramp to inner beltline eastern direction). South Wake Forest in this area is three lanes with the leftmost lane marked clearly for access to the I-440 ramp, however traffic tends to queue in BOTH lanes (left and center) on Wake Forest Rd. and this causes backups and sometimes accidents because the center lane is not an access to the turn lanes therefore drivers in the center lane are not expecting a total stop in traffic. What seems to be needed here are some sort of vertical traffic stanchion to block center lane southbound drivers on Wake Forest from trying to access the left turn lanes once they get past the red light at the intersection of Navajo Dr. and Wake Forest Rd. This is a repeated problem every day during afternoon traffic. If drivers turning left would simply queue into the left (center most) lane of southbound Wake Forest, this would allow them to fan into the two turn lanes once they are available. I'm not sure if this should be reported to the City of Raleigh or if this is a NC State issue (state road?). I would greatly appreciate it if you could clarify and pass this along before there are more accidents in this very busy area during afternoon traffic. I have also marked the area of concern in the attached .jpg.
9 Comments
Daily user (Guest)
I cant say never, but i work in the office building behind Dennys so i go through this area at least 4 times a day and rarely see a wreck.
Putting up obstacles would make it nearly impossible for drivers exiting navaho drive from denny side to get into left lane to get onto 440 east. I depend on moving over once i get into that lane. Traffic is usually so backed up that some turning right can never get completely over.
Randy Owens (Registered User)
應答 City of Raleigh 3 (Verified Official)
Randy Owens (Registered User)
Daily user (Guest)
In addition, other than the cars that move from the center lane to the second turn lane, that lane is seldom used. Daily once i can get into the middle lane, i can easily access the turn lane from the center lane because no one uses it. As for cars not expecting to have to slow down in the middle lane, I would hope that we each have control of our cars, especially in a easy to see congested intersection. Not trying to argue, just different opinion. Probably best if the option center lane was a turn left lane only, with only one lane as a straight through lane.
Randy Owens (Registered User)
@DailyUser - please review the lane configurations again. I think you may be confused. There are 4 lanes southbound. THREE are currently marked for through traffic. ONE is marked as I-440 access (both via painting on the roadway and an overhead sign at Navajo Dr intersection). Not sure what you mean about middle lane and center lane. Right at the I-440 interchange, there are TWO left turn lanes and THREE through lanes for South Wake Forest Rd. The problem that I point out is that people begin to queue as if they expect that both left lanes (in the 4 lane configuration) south of Navajo drive are available for access to I-440 when in fact only one left lane (centermost lane) is available. Once you pass down the single I-440 access lane, it widens into two left turn lanes PAST the traffic signal at Wake Forest/I-440 (again, as you travel south). Prior to this signal, the three lanes on the right are only for Wake Forest Rd south traffic and the 1 additional left lane is for accessing I-440.
I also use this area daily, and have for the last 14 years. I have seen many accidents here and would really be surprised if you have not seen accidents here during evening rush hour (1630 - 1830). That 'far left lane' that you refer to in your post is the ONLY lane available and marked for I-440 access. If you are using any other lane, then you are contributing to the exact problem that I am posting about.
Daily user (Guest)
I have been in the area about 8 years, wonder if our offices are next to each other? I honestly have not witnessed any accidents, but i am sure the city has all those reports to substantiate your claim so no need to depend on my memory.
I concede you are correct about the number of lanes. I do concede that the signage designates only the far left lane as 440 only. I will also concede that if you are not in the far left lane, you may be inconvenienced by having to slow down for guilty drivers such as my self as we veer over into the turn lane ( under the 440 overpass), a lane that is rarely used by drivers other than those like myself who have almost no chance of getting in the far left lane from navaho and even if we take the back way, it would be difficult to get into the "440 only" lane.
Maybe the solution is to change the left straight through lane into a turn lane, making two turn lanes to 440 and two straight through lanes? May not be convenient, but safer if that is a valid issue.
As i said before, not trying to argue, just a different perspective for the city to take into consideration. Will wait to hear from the city.
Thanks for the dialogue.
關閉 City of Raleigh 3 (Verified Official)
Sorry for the substantial delay in responding to this post. A number of See Click Fix issues have been lost in the system and are just now being recovered. Our apologies for letting this one sit for so long!
This road is maintained by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. NCDOT does not track See, Click, Fix inquiries. If you'd like to follow up on this issue with them, please use this contact information: https://apps.dot.state.nc.us/ContactUS/PostComment.aspx?Unit=Division_5
Randy Owens (Registered User)