Kirkwood Intersection Accidents at Big Bend Road and I-270

As one of the larger cities in St. Louis County, Kirkwood has a great deal of diverse areas. There are historic buildings, parks, and a busy downtown. While this kind of diversity makes Kirkwood a wonderful place to live, as well as visit, it also brings in a great deal of traffic from the surrounding cities. With four different highways running through the city, getting around can be hectic. This is especially true on I-270, which is one of the more trafficked highways in St. Louis County. Where I-270 gets the most dangerous, however, is at the intersection with Big Bend Road.

When first examining the intersection between I-270 and Big Bend Road, you may not notice anything particularly dangerous about it. The highway leads into the road at two different points, and each point splits into two prongs, leading to four on- and off-ramps. There are also two through streets that allow drivers to switch directions, as the eastern and western lanes of Big Bend Road are split at the intersection. While that may be a little complicated, what truly makes this intersection dangerous is how those through streets are controlled.

While the westernmost through lane has a traffic stop to allow drivers to safely pass, the eastern through lane has no such light. Instead, drivers must rely on right-of-way. If drivers need to cross the through lane to get onto I-270, then they must stop and wait for a pause in traffic before continuing with the turn. While this may be an easy feat on an empty street, Big Bend Road is one of the central roads in Kirkwood, and is often full of traffic, especially during commuting hours. If a driver mistimed the turn or mistook the right-of-way, then the resulting accident would be catastrophic.

While this road design does leave something to be desired, those who drive on it do have a duty to keep others on the roadway safe. Sadly, in Kirkwood, most accidents are related to driver negligence. According to the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), the leading causes of collisions in the city are:

• Aggressive driving
• Distracted driving
• Speeding
• Ignoring the right-of-way at intersections

There is no excuse for driver negligence. All drivers have a duty of care to those on the roadways with them, meaning that all drivers should be driving responsibly to avoid causing injury to others. If you have become the victim of a serious car accident, then you deserve proper compensation. Call our firm, Page Law, at 1-800-CAR-CRASH (800-227-2727) for your free consultation. Start the process of getting the settlement that you need.