Rumble strips installed at intersection where fatal crashes happened

POLO — The news that permanent rumble strips were installed on South Lowell Park Road near its intersection with West Pines Road had Trisha Richards in tears.

“I honestly thought it wasn’t going to happen, so I’m so glad it did,” said Richards, whose father was killed in a July 31, 2021, crash at the intersection.

The rumble strips were grooved in on June 15, Ogle County Engineer Jeremy Ciesiel said. There are three sets on either side of the intersection, all within 1,000 feet of it, he said.

Between Jan. 1, 2009, and April 30, 2022, 21 crashes occurred at the intersection, located about one mile west of White Pines Forest State Park, according to a traffic study conducted last year by Ciesiel’s department. Sixteen of them involved drivers on South Lowell Park Road who either did not obey the stop signs, or failed to yield to traffic on West Pines Road after stopping.

Several of the crashes resulted in serious injuries or fatalities, including 66-year-old Terry E. Richards.

Terry Richards was riding his motorcycle on West Pines Road when a driver traveling on South Lowell Park Road failed to yield and ran into him. He was flown to Javon Bea Hospital in Rockford, where he died.

In July 2022, flashing LED-enhanced stop signs and temporary rumble strips were installed on South Lowell Park Road leading up to West Pines Road.

In the year since, the Ogle County Sheriff’s Office has not reported any crashes involving multiple vehicles at the intersection.

“It seems like it’s something that has definitely helped,” said Trisha Richards, who lives in Sterling. “Hopefully that continues on. I know in our area here, we have different rumble strips and roundabouts and it helps.”

Sue Ramage, whose sister died in a crash at South Lowell Park and West Pines roads, agreed.

“To go a whole year without any [crashes], that’s pretty good,” Ramage said. “Even the temporary ones helped. It did something.”

Her sister, Kathleen Brooks, died July 5, 1972, at age 22. Brooks’ then-2-year-old daughter survived the crash.

Rumble strips initially were a concern because of the disruptive noise they can cause, but a petition signed by nearby property owners helped push the project forward, Ciesiel said.

Marcia Dewey, of Polo, brought petitions signed by the nearby property owners to the May 17, 2022, Ogle County Board meeting. The petitions state the residents are OK with rumble strops being added and that they are aware of the noise factor. She also had other petitions with more than 200 total signatures asking that rumble strips be put in on South Lowell Park Road.

Dewey was critically injured in a June 1, 2021, crash at the South Lowell Park and West Pines roads intersection. The driver of a box truck didn’t obey the stop sign on South Lowell Park Road and entered the intersection.

The permanent rumble strips cost $13,000, and were installed by a contractor as part of county roadwork, Ciesiel said.

“They’re not your traditional rumble strips that are in other parts of the county,” he said. “We took a model that we got from the IDOT [Illinois Department of Transportation] District 3 office that is used in the city of Ohio that is right in the [city’s] downtown area. After driving over it several times, I noticed that it gave a nice feel, that it was audible to drivers, but didn’t disrupt the people around it — and it was surrounded by hopes.”

The style isn’t what Ramage expected, but she’s glad to see them nevertheless.

“As long as it does the job, that’s what matters,” she said. “I’m just happy for the rumble strips. I hope it saves some lives and slows people down.”