On August 12, 2025, My father-in-law, Dan Herron, was taken from us in a violent, completely preventable accident at the intersection of M-20 and Coleman Road in Greendale Township. He was driving his side-by-side northbound on Coleman when he was struck by an eastbound vehicle on M-20. ​ While nothing can undo what happened to Dan, taking action now is the only way can save other lives and ensure no other family has to endure the pain of losing a loved one to a known, preventable hazard.

Anyone who drives through here knows this intersection is a tragedy waiting to happen. According to MDOT’s 2024 volume map, 14,474 vehicles pass through M-20 and Coleman Road every single day. Yet despite all that traffic, there are zero rumble strips on either road to warn drivers, and the signal timing leaves almost no room for safety:

•  M-20 (Highway Traffic): Gets 55 seconds of green, 4 seconds of yellow, and 15 seconds of red—allowing high-speed traffic to build momentum and encouraging drivers to blow through late yellows.
• Coleman Road (Cross Traffic): Sit through a long 48-second red, only to be rushed through a brief 7-second green and a quick 3-second yellow—forcing local drivers to scramble across high-speed traffic before the light flips again.

The proof of how dangerous this is isn't just theoretical. In just one 10-minute window on July 26th, I watched traffic from the south-side gas station of M-20 and witnessed 16 vehicles run yellow or red lights on M-20. Six of those violations were near-misses that almost caused a crash. Ten minutes. Sixteen red-light runners.

This intersection has a long, documented history of severe angle crashes, failure-to-yield collisions, and multi-vehicle wrecks that have shut down roads and mobilized emergency crews. Dan’s death wasn't a rare fluke—it was the devastating result of known, unaddressed hazards.

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), Michigan State Police, Midland and Isabella County Sheriff’s Offices, and local leaders have both the power and the responsibility to make the intersection safer. 

I'm demanding immediate, decisive action before another life is lost:

1. Immediate Enforcement:  Increase police presence and targeted patrols to catch people running red lights, speeding, and driving recklessly.
2. Urgent Engineering Upgrades: Install prominent advance-warning signage, flashing beacons, and rumble strips to force drivers to pay attention.
3. Comprehensive Safety Review: Conduct an immediate study of the signal timing (especially the brief 7-second green on Coleman), speed limits, and sightlines to fix the structural flaws here.

Dan’s death was a tragedy, but leaving this intersection unchanged is a choice. Every day officials delay action, local lives are being gambled with.

I’m urging our state, county, and local leaders to stop treating M-20 and Coleman Road as an afterthought and do somethingto make this intersection safer.

​Please sign this petition to demand real, immediate change at M-20 and Coleman Road before another family loses someone they love.