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Cairo-Durham school entrance gets signs to slow drivers

Jan 16, 2020 12:32 am
Sarah Trafton reports for Columbia-Greene Media that after a fatal crash in 2011, and a non-fatal accident in 2016, the entrance to the Cairo-Durham schools on Route 145 is getting signs to slow drivers. Local officials wanted a turning lane, or other efforts to slow down drivers. “This is not the solution we hoped for, but it is a solution,” Cairo Legislator Harry Lennon said. Cairo Legislator William Lawrence used to teach at the school. “The Department of Transportation did not feel there were enough accidents there to warrant a turning lane,” he said. After the 2011 accident, the DOT did lower the speed limit from 55 mph to 45 mph and eliminate the passing lane in front of the school. Now they are getting signs that show driver's how fast they are moving. DOT studies of the road in 2015 showed between 4,000 to 10,000 drivers passing the school each day. Of those, about 15 percent go faster than 58 mph. The speed signs will be installed in the spring, but don't remedy the blind spot on the north side of the intersection. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.