The City Council of Peachtree City has given the OK for city staff to finalize plans for a stop light at the intersection of Flat Creek Road and Ga. Highway 54, an area that is becoming more hazardous as the volume of traffic grows.

Seven traffic accidents have occurred at the intersection in the past 16 months, according a preliminary report by Police Chief Jim Murray. In the May 6 council meeting where the issue was discussed, Murray added that a number of school buses cross the highway on Flat Creek and a stop light would probably motivate more to cross there.

"It's overdue," Councilwoman Annie McMenamin said of the light. She pointed out that many people, including a large number of senior citizens, find themselves running across the highway to reach the City Hall/library complex on foot due to the lack of signalization at that spot.

The city's engineering department cited a few specific problems at the intersection that are probably causing accidents. The two left-turn lanes on Hwy. 54 are not offset, resulting in opposing vehicles causing a visual obstruction, and left turns off the highway are being made without proper sight distance, according to the engineer's report.

In addition to the Police Department's recommendation based on accident records, the Georgia Department of Transportation has reviewed accident data and traffic volume, and also recommend signalization, the city engineer said.

Estimated cost for the stop light is $64,000 with mast arms, a reasonable price according to city staff, compared to existing signals at Kelly Drive and at Cooper Circle, which were erected for about $50,000 using span wire.

The state DOT requires no additional lane work at the Flat Creek/Hwy. 54 site, and the light can be synchronized with other signals along Hwy. 54, according to city staff. DOT traffic studies show that the light at the intersection of highways 54 and 75 must be timed independently for that intersection to work properly, so it cannot be tied into this system.

Staff recommendation was for the council to authorize continued work on the finalized plans for the project, as well as the mayor signing the necessary DOT documents. The council also was advised to allocate the $64,000 from contingency.