Vince,
I am writing in response to PennDOT’s “comprehensive Engineering and Traffic Study” for an all-way stop control at the intersection of Lenape Unionville Road (SR 3025) and Locust Grove Road in Pocopson Township.
However, I want to be very clear: your response does not address my concerns.
Your determination relies heavily on the statement that the intersection does not meet the crash thresholds described in MUTCD warrant criteria (including the “6 crashes in a 36-month period” standard). While I understand PennDOT must follow regulations, I have lived at my home for 159 months, and during that time I have personally witnessed, heard about, and responded to far more accidents at this intersection than your statistics appear to reflect.
That raises an obvious question: How many crashes go unreported, undocumented, or never formally recorded as “correctable by an all-way stop,” and therefore never appear in your evaluation? Because the lived reality of this intersection does not align with the numbers being presented.
If PennDOT is relying on a narrow window of recorded crashes to justify inaction, then I ask you to take your “comprehensive” study back further...specifically to Friday, May 13, 2011, when Jesse Picard was catastrophically injured at this intersection and left paralyzed. That event alone should have been enough to permanently elevate the safety urgency of this location.
For reference, Jesse Picard’s story and the seriousness of his injuries are well documented here:
Unionville Times: https://www.unionvilletimes.com/?p=3084
“Scott’s Helping Jesse on His Journey”: https://scondablog.wordpress.com/2011/08/16/scotts-helping-jesse-on-his-journey/
CBS News Philadelphia (health coverage / breathing assistance system): https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/health-alert-new-system-helps-patients-breathe-on-their-own/
The issue here is not whether PennDOT can cite MUTCD warrants. The issue is that this intersection has a long history of serious crashes, and the public is being asked to accept that nothing should change until enough people are injured within a short enough time period to satisfy a specific numerical threshold.
That is not an acceptable safety strategy.
While you state, “I hope this information addresses your concerns,” it does not. I will continue to report accidents and safety concerns at this intersection, and I will continue to request that PennDOT re-evaluate the safety controls here using a broader historical lens and the real-world conditions that residents experience.
Please confirm whether PennDOT is willing to review crash history and safety incidents at this intersection beyond the limited 2023–2025 period, including historical severe injury crashes such as the May 13, 2011 incident.
https://www.change.org/4WayStopSignsNeeded
Lynn Martin