We, the undersigned, are formally requesting an immediate engineering review and reconstruction of the newly installed raised curbed medians on Highway 95 in Lake Havasu City, AZ that encroach into active travel lanes and eliminate essential shoulder space. We support improvements that enhance roadway safety. Unfortunately, the current median design conflicts with established FHWA, AASHTO, and ADOT safety standards and has already contributed to multiple crashes, vehicle damage, and near-miss incidents. These medians do not prevent head-on collisions; instead, they create new and serious hazards for our community.

Why This Design Is Unsafe for Our Town

Highway 95 serves a unique population: many of our residents and visitors drive heavy-duty trucks, long-wheelbase vehicles, RVs, and trailers. These vehicles require more maneuvering space than passenger vehicles. The raised, unprotected curbs, many of which intrude into the travel lanes, leave:

•No room to correct for trailer sway

•No safe area to pull over during an emergency

•No buffer for wide vehicles passing each other

•No margin for error for all drivers or tourists unfamiliar with the road

•Insufficient clearance for emergency response vehicles

FHWA openly states that curbs should not be used for barrier or containment purposes on high-speed roadways and that they can increase crash severity for larger or multi-unit vehicles. This definitely describes the town of Lake Havasu City.

The “Traffic Calming Device” Explanation is not Supported by Engineering Guidance 

We understand that the curbed medians have been described as “traffic calming devices.” However, FHWA’s published guidance is clear:

•Curbs do not function as lane separators or deflection barriers

•Curbs do not prevent cross-median, head-on collisions

•Curbs introduce new fixed-object hazards

•True traffic calming measures do not involve rigid concrete placed within high-speed lanes

Calling these structures “traffic calming devices” does not make them function as such. They do not deter dangerous drivers; instead, they punish safe, cautious drivers while allowing reckless drivers to cause accidents involving innocent bystanders.

Why Lowering the Speed Limit or Adding Reflectors Is Not a Solution

We understand that lowering the posted speed limit and adding reflectors has been mentioned as a potential fix. Unfortunately:

•Drivers travel according to operating speed, not posted speed

•Reckless drivers will continue to speed regardless of the number on the sign

•Visibility improvements do not eliminate the risk of striking a fixed curb

•A curb that destabilizes a large vehicle at 55 mph can still do so at 45 mph

•Reflectors do not restore lost shoulders or create space for emergencies.

These ideas may reduce confusion at night but cannot correct the structural hazard these medians introduce.

Emergency Access Is Now Obstructed

By eliminating pull-off space and narrowing lanes, emergency vehicles struggle to pass through several segments of Highway 95. There are now areas where:

•fire trucks cannot legally or safely navigate around stopped vehicles

•ambulances cannot bypass traffic to reach patients

•drivers experiencing medical emergencies have nowhere to pull over

•stalled vehicles force traffic into unsafe merges or sudden braking

These conditions increase response times and the risk of secondary crashes.

What We Are Requesting

•A formal Road Safety Assessment (RSA) conducted by a qualified, independent engineering firm.

•Reconstruction of any curbed medians that intrude into travel lanes or create unsafe narrowing inconsistent with FHWA/AASHTO design standards.

•Restoration of safe shoulder space to allow pull-offs, emergency response, and recovery maneuvers.

•Replacement of curbed medians with FHWA-approved countermeasures that genuinely prevent head-on collisions, such as:

-centerline rumble strips

-flush medians instead of curbed medians

-cable median barriers (where appropriate)

-Visibility and marking improvements (reflectors and paint) only as TEMPORARY measures, as they are not substitutes for proper engineering correction. Painting or reflectors do not fix the underlying design flaw. **THESE MEASURES SHOULD ONLY BE TEMPORARY UNTIL PERMANENTLY FIXED.**

Why We Are United in This Request

Residents and travelers want Highway 95 to be safe for everyone: families, seniors, trailer drivers, RVs, tourists, commercial drivers, and emergency responders.

Most of us drive cautiously every day, yet we now face hazards we cannot reasonably avoid. The current design leaves safe drivers vulnerable while doing little to deter unsafe ones. 

Our goal is not to criticize safety improvements. Our goal is to ensure those improvements meet proven safety standards and do not put our community at further risk.

We appreciate your consideration of our concerns and our efforts to keep our community roads safe for all who live, work and travel through our beautiful town. 

Respectfully,

The Residents and Travelers of Lake Havasu City