PALM HARBOR, Fla. -- A crash-prone intersection in Palm Harbor now has new changes to keep you safe.
Monday afternoon, Pinellas County crews put up signs and plastic barricades to restrict drivers from making left-hand turns or going straight through the intersection at Belcher Road and Innisbrook Drive. The changes come after hundreds of drivers begged the county to add a traffic signal at the busy intersection.
Pinellas County leaders say now that drivers can only make right-hand turns from the east and west sides of Innisbrook onto Belcher, the intersection should be much safer.
The county says it is a temporary solution that should prevent crashes until they reach a decision on who should pay for a traffic signal at the intersection since Innisbrook Drive is a private road.
A traffic signal at the busy intersection could still be on the table but Tom Washburn in the Pinellas County Public Works Department says it is more of a long-term improvement. County leaders completed a study at the intersection and determined a traffic signal is warranted and could help prevent injury crashes.
The county also added plastic barricades in the middle of the intersection to keep drivers from going straight through all four lanes on Belcher. They also added speed bumps leading up to the intersection to slow down traffic.
Pinellas County leaders say prior to the changes made this week, crashes had dramatically increased at the intersection.
