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Route 422 crossover crash renews safety concerns
(by Sue Reid - April 21, 2010)
Route 422 crossover crash renews safety concerns
By SUE REID
It was a lucky day in Solon, Fire Chief William J. Shaw told City Council's safety and public properties committee last week regarding a four-car accident on the Route 422 freeway west of Harper Road.
There were minor injuries in the accident, which occurred at about 1:24 p.m. April 14. According to the police report, a 72-year-old Warrensville Heights man was eastbound on the freeway when he blacked out and crossed the median, striking three cars heading westbound.
"It very easily could have been a fatal," Mr. Shaw said.
Police closed the freeway for about an hour and diverted traffic onto Harper Road. All three city ambulances were on the scene.
Assistant Police Chief Raymond J. Tittl said the driver first hit a westbound vehicle in the left lane on the driver's-side-door area. That car, which was driven by a Bedford man, then bounced off and hit two vehicles in the right lane driven by a Solon man and a Shaker Heights man. The driver who blacked out then went off the roadway, and the front of his vehicle ended up on top of the guardrail, according to the report.
Charles R. Leeth, 72, of Warrensville Heights, who blacked out, was taken by the Solon Fire Department to Hillcrest Hospital in Mayfield Heights. Also transported were: Lee Walter, 54, of Bedford, to Bedford Hospital; and William T. Eden Jr., 80, of Solon, to Hillcrest Hospital. A 45-year-old Shaker Heights man did not require transport.
"The visible injuries appeared to be minor," Mr. Shaw said. There was some concern about internal injuries with the man who crossed over, he said, which is why he was transported to Hillcrest Hospital.
Mr. Shaw said that, in November 2004, a similar incident occurred, and a woman was killed. Mr. Shaw asked at the time that the Ohio Department of Transportation install a three-wire system that would prohibit crossovers if drivers lose control of their vehicles.
Mr. Shaw urged the safety committee to continue those efforts and contact the state legislature "before someone gets killed."
He said, "I will be working with the mayor's office to try to get some information to the necessary state agencies."
According to Mr. Tittl, from Jan. 1, 2000, to April 14, 2010, there were eight crossover accidents on the freeway, with one involving the fatality on Nov. 28, 2004.
Mr. Shaw said he was told in 2004 that the median's width and slope meet standards. ODOT "said the design was proper, and we didn't need the cables," he said. "We've had eight accidents that have somehow defeated their design."
Mr. Shaw said that, in his travels around the state, there are areas very similar to the way Route 422 is set up. "I see these three-wire barrier systems," he said. "We have obviously some history and have had a number of accidents over the years.
"I feel they can be prevented by the installation of this type of system. It's pertinent that ODOT look at this."
Mr. Shaw said he will work with the mayor to make contact with officials from ODOT to see if the city can get another review of the situation on Route 422.
Mr. Shaw said last week's accident also brings to light the danger to service department employees who are out on the freeway collecting trash.
"Someone can easily come through the median and strike the workers, or if someone has a medical illness and pulls off the side of road and we are tending to them, there's a potential for bad things to happen," Mr. Shaw said. "I know there is technology or equipment out there that can stop it from happening, and to me it's just a logical solution."
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