Johnson Road interchange shut down due to safety concerns.

By: Raney Riddlebarger

The Johnson Road and U.S. State Route 33 intersection began closing at the decision of the Ohio Department of Transportation on Aug. 23, 2021.

According to ODOT spokesperson Ashley Rittenhouse, “The project aims to reduce the number of conflict points at the intersection,” after “26 crashes occurred at this location between 2009 and 2018.”

Previous countermeasures, such as excess signage, have failed to be effective in stopping the accidents.

Concerns have arisen from the public about the closure and the potential implications it will hold on people’s commutes.

Many high schoolers have used this intersection as a more efficient access point to the high school compared to alternative routes that are now required. The new inflow of traffic to these routes that pass through The Plains has also been cause for concern.

Athens High School senior Luke Davenport, although in favor of the closure for safety reasons, has noticed the effect it has had on traffic and the length of his trip to school. He stated, “While the added time is only a couple minutes, it's something I have had to accommodate to in my morning routine by leaving my house a couple minutes earlier.”

Speaking on the traffic he stated, “The Plains exit ramp seems to almost fill up while the stoplight at the end of the ramp is red.” Rittenhouse stated that timing was changed on the signals in The Plains before construction began to address this traffic.

According to Rittenhouse, however, the complete removal of the intersection instead of a restructure was the only viable option. A stoplight was considered, but she stated that “Studies have shown that the number and sometimes the severity of crashes do not necessarily decrease with the installation of a traffic signal,” and instead just shift the type of crash “from angle (T-Bone) to rear-end type crashes.”

There are currently no plans in place to add a safer intersection at Johnson Rd. in the future. Rittenhouse did state that “ODOT will continue to monitor the traffic safety along the SR 682 corridor as well as at the US 33 / SR 682 interchange.” If an issue arises, the situation will be re-evaluated. Currently, as Rittenhouse commented, “leaving River Road as a right-in-right out intersection,” has been deemed the safest option while still leaving open access to River Road.

Construction on the interchange, and it’s surrounding highway, was completed on Oct. 15.