Some might not know about the risks at the Highway 43/Whitley Avenue intersection in Corcoran. But for approximately 20 local residents who came to a town hall meeting Tuesday night at Corcoran's City Hall, the crossing is notorious for bone-crunching collisions.

In the fog, pulling out onto Highway 43 from the Whitley crossing plays like Russian roulette, because there is no stop for Highway 43 traffic barreling north or south. In the words of Kings County supervisor Richard Valle, people who want to get onto or cross the highway there "say a quick prayer and punch it."

Some don't make it. City councilman Dick Haile said he personally held someone as they died after a crash there.

Everybody wants something to be done. But the solution suggested by Caltrans is unusual: A traffic circle that would circulate cars and trucks from all four directions in a counterclockwise direction.

Traffic circles, or "roundabouts," are common in some parts of the world, including Mexico, but are rarely seen in California.

The interchange doesn't meet state standards for the amount of traffic required to install a stop light, said Caltrans district director John Liu.

Liu estimated it would take at least eight years for traffic to swell enough at the intersection to meet the criteria for a light.

In his presentation, Liu's main argument for the traffic circle was safety. According to him, a traffic light instead of the two-way stop currently in place might cut down on the severity of some accidents, but probably wouldn't reduce the number.

Traffic circles have worked at other high speed rural intersections, such as in Kansas and Oregon, Liu said.

Liu was at pains to dispel any ideas that a traffic circle would be cheaper than a light. In fact, he said, it would be more expensive -- around $2 million to build.

Caltrans would likely pick up 75 percent of the tab, with the county -- and possibly Corcoran -- supplying the rest. The county has already applied for a federal grant to fund improvements at the intersection.

Audience members started off fairly skeptical. Many wondered how it would work in thick fog. Liu said it would force everybody to slow down.

Haile asked about whether large farm vehicles and trucks could negotiate the circle. Liu said any highway legal vehicle should do fine.

Corcoran resident Terrell DeVaney asked Liu why Caltrans installed traffic lights and not traffic circles at some Highway 43 crossings north of Hanford.

"We were behind the times," Liu said, noting that the idea of traffic circles has only recently caught on in the U.S.

By the end of the discussion, some had changed their minds. An informal vote found about half the audience in favor of the idea. Supporters included DeVaney, who called the intersection "a killer."

But construction of a traffic circle is two years away, Liu said. Meanwhile, with fog season here, the deadly risk at the crossing persists. At a minimum, residents seemed eager for Caltrans to install flashing warning beacons and better road stripes.

Caltrans is looking into doing that as soon as possible, Liu said.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2432.

(Nov. 4, 2009)