Neighbors seek help for dangerous Gaston County intersection

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Neighbors on the Gaston and Clevland county line are looking for change after years of bad car crashes at the intersection of Lewis Farm Road and Highway 216.

“I’m afraid we’re going to drive up on another [crash] and they are going to be dead,” Gaston county resident Yvonna Mathis said.

If you stand at the corner of the intersection, there is a lot of evidence of those accidents that have happened. There is broken glass and huge pieces of plastic left over from accidents, the most recent of which was Monday.

“If they don’t see nobody...zip zip zip,” Leonard Stokes said.

Stokes has lived at the intersection of Lewis Farm Rd. and Highway 216 for 20 years and he’s seen lots of bad driving habits, not to mention the crashes.

“One driver flipped completely over in my yard,” Stokes said as he showed pictures of a car.

After years of people ending up in his yard and destroying his property, he wants something to change.

“They got two stop signs, that don’t work. They got the slow-down signs, that don’t work,” Stokes said.

Yvonna Mathis lives just up the road and had always disliked this stretch

“Every single day when I drive to go to the grocery store, the pharmacy to work I have to go through this intersection,” Mathis said.

But after she was hit at this crossroad last year, she decided to act and reach out to WBTV

“I’m extremely nervous I’ll get hit again,” Mathis.

Here’s what the WBTV team learned. You can reach out to the North Carolina Department of Transportation by phone, email, or through their website. You can explain your issue and someone will get back to you in 48 hours. If it’s deemed necessary, a traffic study will be conducted to determine how the area can be made safer.

“Safety is our priority so we try to get those concerns taken care of right away,” NCDOT communications officer Marcus Thompson said.

For Mathis and Stokes, they hope improvement comes before the next crash.

“It’s really dangerous on this highway and we really need some help,” Mathis said.

Related: Residents demand action to make a dangerous Kaimuki intersection safer

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