North Huntingdon police to increase presence along section of Route 30 due to crashes
NORTH HUNTINGDON, Pa. (KDKA) — After numerous crashes, police in North Huntingdon are increasing their presence along a section of Route 30.
Between Carpenter and Malts lanes, Route 30 is a place police know all too well for all the wrong reasons when it comes to automotive incidents and crashes.
"Unfortunately, there's been a lot of fatal crashes in that corridor and a number of crashes with people getting significant injuries," North Huntingdon Chief Robert Rizzo said.
About 197 accidents, according to the police, with the intersection of Colonial Manner and Route 30 being a hot zone for crashes.
"Somewhere around 38 (crashes) over a four- or five-year period," Rizzo said
With those numbers, it is no surprise motorists driving Route 30 in the area are well aware of the dangers.
"They just don't pay attention," motorist Alyssa Maywood said. "They swerve in and out of traffic. They sit at red lights because they're too busy on their phones."
"Coming up through here to Jeannette and Greensburg is kind of a nightmare," Ed Kelso of Irwin said.
To try to curb the crash totals, North Huntingdon police say they will step up patrols.
"We're going to enforce speeding," Rizzo said. "We're going to enforce track control devices, aggressive driving, distracted driving and just get a really strong officer presence out there."
Police said one of the biggest crash creators is the following:
"People are stopping and making lefts into a lot of businesses and roadways," Rizzo said.
But the chief says any and all future improvements won't make a difference unless everyone does what they should be doing now which is driving paying attention and watching their speed.
