P-W Highway fix requires more than a Band-Aid

The Palmer-Wasilla Highway has gotten a lot of attention in recent years. As the Valley has grown, traffic along the 10-mile thoroughfare between the borough's hub cities has also increased. Congestion has led to a rise in vehicle collisions as well as increasingly dangerous conditions for those who navigate the road.

Perhaps the biggest hazard of travel on the Palmer-Wasilla is turning onto or off of the road. In particular, left turns off the highway, especially during the morning and evening rush hours, are most likely to leave drivers with white knuckles, as other vehicles zoom by in the breakdown lane and turns often must be timed to maneuver between oncoming traffic.

So it is somewhat encouraging that the state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities has announced plans to beef up four intersections along the highway by installing traffic lights. In 2007, the Hemmer Road, Equestrian Street, Hyer Road and Wagon Road-Schelin Spur intersections are scheduled to receive upgrades and traffic lights with $4 million that was originally budgeted by the state for studying the road.

DOT says the upgrades are at four high-traffic areas and should aid drivers who need to turn there as well as drivers farther along the highway who will benefit from the break in traffic caused by the signals. DOT noted community concern as helping to put the project on a fast track.

It is encouraging that a government agency is this responsive when addressing a real need. But we hope that residents, lawmakers and DOT officials don't think that four traffic lights is the final solution to the growing problems presented by high traffic flow on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway.

Traffic lights are a Band-Aid, and not much of one. So much more needs to be done. Real, long-term progress with safety concerns will not be adequately addressed until the road is widened and converted into a five-lane highway.

As we have noted here previously, this is no small project. It is also not an inexpensive project. The cost of procuring rights of way alone is astronomical. But it won't get any cheaper if it is put off.

The human cost of procrastinating is also worth pondering. What is the value of all the vehicle collisions, injuries and fatalities that might be avoided on an improved roadway?

When do we say enough is enough?