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Jacksonville wants more review of intersection Traffic moves though the corner of South Fifth Street and California Street in Jacksonville Monday morning, an intersection many find confusing. [Mail Tribune / Andy Atkinson] Monday Dec 18, 2017 at 2:00 AM Dec 19, 2017 at 6:44 AM Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune JACKSONVILLE — The City Council has asked the Oregon Department of Transportation to look again at the intersection of Fifth and California streets, where drivers appear to get confused, after the agency discouraged creation of a four-way stop. One option for examination may be a stop sign for drivers heading south on Fifth Street, who are currently permitted a right turn onto California Street without stopping. “When I took my own mom through the intersection, she was terrified that a stop sign by law was not a stop sign,” said Councilor Criss Garcia, who made the motion to have the agency investigate the impact of a three-way stop. The council in February asked ODOT to look at making the intersection a four-way stop. But the agency said a four-way stop would produce traffic jams of up to a block long and result in a failing intersection in a couple years. The intersection was considered to be safe, with only five crashes and one injury — to a cyclist — over 10 years. Local residents have voiced concerns about pedestrian and driver safety at the intersection, where traffic going east on California and cars turning right off Fifth don't have to stop. Earlier, ODOT internal correspondence suggested that a four-way stop might be worth a trial period, but that was not offered when ODOT District 8 Manager Jerry Marmon and traffic engineer Jared Carpenter spoke with the council in early December. “I will grant that the traffic control is somewhat confusing,” said Carpenter. He cited the unique sign on California at westbound Fifth Street, which notes that oncoming traffic and traffic from the right doesn't stop. Westbound drivers on California who stop at Fifth Street create the highest number of violations that Police Chief Dave Towe sees at the spot, because some drivers will enter the intersection not realizing cars coming south onto Fifth don’t need to stop, he said. “The intersection is operating pretty efficiently,” said Carpenter. But projections with a four-way stop show it would produce backups during peak summer hours. Motorists might use other streets in town to avoid backups, Marmon said. Several speakers said locals, both drivers and pedestrians, already use other streets to avoid going through or crossing at the intersection. “Most locals already leave this intersection alone at all costs. They already use the side streets,” said Linda Graham, who said tourists at her downtown business sometimes interpret the sign saying "right turn permitted without stopping" as applying to all signs in town. Other possible improvements might be made with signage, striping and lighting, Marmon told the council. In other traffic-related news, the city is looking for grants to purchase a portable radar device that could be attached to sign posts and display vehicle speeds. The units cost up to $5,000, City Administrator Jeff Alvis said. — Freelance writer Tony Boom lives in Ashland. Reach him at [email protected].