The regularity of near collisions at the intersection of U.S. Route 51 and Presley Tour Road prompts Marjorie L. Earll to avoid the intersection altogether.

The Oct. 7 deaths of Amanda Dalton, 17, of Makanda, and Jennifer Riegger, 16, of Carbondale, have provided ammunition for some residents to voice their concerns about the hazardous nature of the intersection.

Dalton and Riegger died when the vehicle of Jewell Hagler, 17, of Makanda, who survived the accident, was broadsided as it crossed the path of an oncoming truck traveling north on U.S. 51.

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I have stopped using 51 because of that intersection, Earll said. I use old 51 instead. Even though there are more curves, there is less speeding.

The dangers of the intersection are not a result of low visibility, but rather from careless driving, area residents say. Earll said it is not uncommon to see cars passing each other in the middle of the intersection or to hear the screeching of brakes pre-empting yet another close call.

The Illinois Department of Transportation has no plans at this time to make any changes to the intersection.

If it’s a high-accident location then we would look into it, said Bill Stout, district operations engineer for IDOT. This intersection is not.

So far this year, there have been three accidents at the intersection in 1997, causing two fatalities. In 1996, no accidents were recorded; in 1995, one accident resulted in minor injuries, and in 1994, one accident caused incapacitating injuries.

A comparison is made by IDOT at the end of each year to determine which intersections in the district have the most collisions. Those with the highest number are focused on for possible renovations, Stout said.

Even though there have been relatively few accidents in the past five years at the intersection of U.S. 51 and Presley Tour Road, stories of near collisions at this intersection are abundant.

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If you poll people who travel 51 regularly, they’ll attest to the fact that there’s a lot of near misses, Robert Spellman, SIUC associate professor in journalism, said. There are enough near crashes to suggest that some people exercise poor judgment.

Stop signs also are frequently ignored by those traveling on Presley Tours Road, which is also referred to as Makanda Road, Tracy Dawes said.

It’s hard for some to judge the distance of oncoming traffic, and some just don’t stop at all, Dawes, a Dongola resident, said. I just can’t believe that someone would take a chance like that.