LISA MARCHESONI, Senior Writer
Posted: Sunday, June 21, 2009 7:34 am

Longtime resident Robert Jordan knows the dangers of the 6000 block of Bradyville Pike.

Four people died in traffic crashes in a one-quarter mile stretch in the past 13 years south of Murfreesboro.

One 17-year-old driver died in 1995 after flipping her car several times in his yard. Another man died after striking a culvert and becoming entangled in trees. One driver was killed near the dumpsters and a young mother died this year.

The narrow road lacks shoulders. And if vehicles stray off the road, they can expect a drop up to 2 feet.

“If you get off on the side of the road, you’re not going to get back,” Jordan said, explaining, “It’s going to drop off. You can’t get back on. It’s too deep. You can’t control a car like that.”

Jordan has an explanation for the traffic fatalities on his road, which is due for a Tennessee Department of Transportation upgrade by this time next year. That proposed upgrade was due to the death of a young girl who was struck and killed there last year by a Rutherford County Sheriff’s Department detective.

That death prompted a complete study of Bradyville Pike between Middle Tennessee and Rutherford Boulevards.

That study suggested repaving the road between Middle Tennessee and Minerva, adding 4-foot, paved shoulders for pedestrian and bicycle use, and replacing all traffic-control signs, traffic lights and stop signs on side roads.

But the reasons are not as clear at other locations.

During the past five years, 150 people died in traffic crashes all over Rutherford County.

Because of the high volume of traffic, it’s no surprise 33 people died in crashes on Interstate 24 while four died on state Route 840, routes that cross Rutherford County.

Tennessee Highway Patrol Sgt. Rick Smith believes the driver has more to do with the crash than the construction of the highways. He compared drivers speeding on the interstate and the curvy, no-shoulder Jefferson Pike.

“It’s easier to navigate I-24 than Jefferson Pike,” Smith said. “The problem is drivers try to navigate Jefferson Pike like it’s the interstate.”

Smith and Troopers Justin Boyd, Rick Jones and Joe Smith and Sheriff’s Patrol Lt. Joe Gray listed some locations for multiple fatalities with no particular factors:

• The straight stretch of Interstate 24 between the 89 mile marker at Buchanan Road to the 92 mile marker. Five people died there within one month in 2007.

• Another stretch of I-24 between the 66- and 68-mile markers between Almaville Road and the Sam Ridley Parkway exits. Four people died there in the past three years.

• U.S. Highway 41 South (Manchester Highway) near Epps Mill Road. The location has high traffic volume. Seven people were killed on the highway.

• U.S. Highway 231 South (Shelbyville Highway) where four people died.

• U.S. Highway 231 North (Lebanon Highway) where three people died.

• West Jefferson Pike near Mona where four people died.

• U.S. Highway 70 South (Woodbury Highway) where five people died.

• State Route 96 East (Lascassas Highway) claimed four lives.

• State Route 96 West (Franklin Highway) where two people died.

• County roads Sulphur Springs Road where five people died and Weakley Lane near Smyrna where three people died.

Murfreesboro Police Sgt. Don Fanning, who commands the Fatal Accident Crash Team, said fatal crashes can occur anywhere.

Some of the most common places where traffic fatalities occur in Murfreesboro include:

• South Church Street near Intestate 24 where seven people lost their lives.

• Northwest Broad Street near state Route 840 where three people died.

• Rutherford Boulevard between Southeast Broad Street and South Church Street claimed four lives while North Rutherford Boulevard took two lives.

In Smyrna, three people each died on Lowry Street and Rocky Fork Road while in La Vergne, Waldron Road recorded two fatalities.

Contributing factors

The Tennessee Department of Safety rated counties in relation to crash performance between 2003-07.

Of the 95 counties, Rutherford County ranks:

• Fifth in the number of licensed drivers.

• Seventh for overall crashes.

• Second for injury crash rates.

• Fifth for young driver crash rates.

• Third for senior crash rates.

Many of the officers who investigate crashes mention the county’s exploding growth as shown above as one factor in the fatality rate.

Smith said more traffic means higher fatalities and congestion.

Ironically, the fatality rate averages about 30 people per year without a rise in traffic deaths during the past five years.

Fanning said everyone can do their part by slowing down and paying attention.

“You can’t account for what others do,” Fanning said.

Gray said with more drivers on the road, drivers must slow down to accommodate the congestion.

Visibility of more law enforcement officers keeps the fatality rate from skyrocketing higher, he believes.

“Anytime you have visibility, it slows traffic down,” Gray said. “With the resources of having more officers, that puts troopers on the major highways such as the interstate and 840 and allows the troopers to do more enforcement.”

Smith said troopers want to be proactive in traffic enforcement to keep the fatality rate low. But lack of manpower finds troopers often reacting by answering traffic crashes.

When people complain about speeders in a particular area, troopers try to respond. For example, one resident complained about high speeds in the 45 mph zone on Barfield-Crescent Road linking South Church Street and Midland Road/Armstrong Valley Road. One driver died in a crash at the end of Barfield-Crescent Road near Midland Road/Armstrong Valley Road last month.

“I was real pleased the way troopers responded” through visibility and enforcement, Smith said. “We try very hard to be proactive.”

Lisa Marchesoni may be reached at 869-0814 or at lmarchesoni@mufreesboropost.com.