Drivers seeing red over flashing yellow signal at Route 30 intersection in Hempfield
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Some motorists are having a tough time getting used to a newly installed left-turn-yield traffic signal at North Greengate Road and Route 30, according to social media chatter.
The traffic signal is among 11 upgrades PennDOT has made since last spring along a 3-mile stretch of Route 30 between Jeannette and Hempfield. Bronder Technical Services was awarded a $2.4 million contract for the ongoing work.
As opposed to waiting on a steady green light and yielding to oncoming traffic before making the left turn from North Greengate onto Route 30 toward Greensburg, motorists are greeted by a flashing yellow signal that is designed to let them know it is OK to make a left turn — but to do so with caution and only after yielding to oncoming traffic and pedestrians.
“It’s a mess. Went from bad to worse,” Dave Blas posted to the popular Across Westmoreland Facebook page.
Andrea Baer of Grapeville said many drivers are unfamiliar with the flashing signal, and she believes they are confused by the “blinking” yellow signal.
The flashing yield signal follows the traditional green turn signal, followed by a steady yellow light and then a brief red light. After a seconds-long pause at red, the flashing yellow begins and lasts about 15 seconds.
PennDOT says the flashing yellow arrow means “drivers must yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians before completing the left turn.”
“It’s not the light’s fault. However, I can tell you I travel that road every day, and it’s added a good five minutes to my travel,” said Baer, who believes it has made traffic backups on North Greengate Road worse.
Although the blinking signal may be new to Greensburg-area drivers, PennDOT began installing them at more hazardous intersections across the state more than five years ago. According to news accounts, the first was installed at an intersection on Route 15 in Cumberland County in central Pennsylvania in 2016.
PennDOT reported that research funded by the Federal Highway Administration showed that 1 in 5 left-turn crashes can be eliminated by using flashing yellow arrow signals.
PennDOT has not received any complaints to date on the new signal in Hempfield, said spokesman Jay Ofsanik.
“The signals were installed as part of a corridor project to improve traffic flow and reduce delay on Route 30,” Ofsanic said. “They are adaptive traffic signals, which use advanced technology to adjust timings in real time to reduce delay.”
The North Greengate Road intersection at Route 30 has been the scene of many serious collisions over the years.
On June 28, Michael J. Yatsko of South Connellsville was killed and another person was injured in a three-vehicle crash at the intersection.
Average daily traffic on that section of highway — heavily populated by shopping plazas and restaurants — ranges from 36,000 vehicles near Greensburg to 27,000 closer to Jeannette, according to PennDOT.
Although such flashing signals were introduced in Pennsylvania in 2016, PennDOT said, they have been commonplace in many states for more than a decade.
Like Ofsanik, Hempfield Supervisor Chairman George Reese said township supervisors have not received complaints about the signal.
Meanwhile, not all of the online comments on the signal are negative.
One poster, Tiffany Marie, wrote that she appreciates the signal and thinks it’s an improvement.
“As someone who travels from the Mt. Odin side, I appreciate the light change. I can actually drive through that intersection without dodging cars,” she said.
Marsha Weimer of Bovard, who said she has witnessed numerous accidents at the intersection while working at the nearby Gabe’s store for 17 years, said “it was about time something was done there.”
She noted a coworker was T-boned at the intersection in recent years “and was never able to return to work because of his injuries.”
Weimer also was glad to see another signal added along Route 30 west, just before the intersection, warning drivers of the upcoming traffic signal.
“I think we really needed the improvements,” Weimer said.