MONONGALIA COUNTY, W.Va. Monongalia County residents and business owners on Mayfield Road have called for immediate action to address safety issues. During a public meeting, residents told the Monongalia County Commission that the single-lane road should be improved due to increased traffic and called for support from the State Department of Highways (DOH).
“We have an emergent issue on Mayfield Road due to a lack of maintenance under the Common Core Maintenance Plan by the DOH,” said business owner Jack Adams, who operates Mountain Laurel Kennels. “This is our first step to remedy and find some common ground to get some issues addressed before they become an emergency issue,” he said.
According to Adams and other residents, Mayfield Road has averaged about 75 to 100 cars on a daily basis due to new businesses that have opened on that road as well as an increase in the population around the area. As a result, the one-lane road has led to major traffic delays for residents, which, in turn, have led to aggressive driving tactics by residents and customers alike. With a combination of car traffic and a road that is considered “horrible” during the winter, residents are concerned that if the road isn’t addressed, a severe accident is imminent.
“What’s going to happen here is that the locals are going to take this matter into their own hands, and they’re going to start making this road so miserable that no one is going to want to come up to it to do business at all,” said resident Brent Field. “A solution needs to be found,” he said.
Before talking with the commission, Mayfield Road residents made several attempts to discuss the issue with DOH. They stated there has been little to no action taken on the road over the past several months, with some pothole filling that has taken place. However, residents said the ditches have not been cleared for over a decade.
“It’s been twenty years since our ditches have been cleared, and according to the core maintenance program, they should be cleared every third year,” said resident Tony Clebb on the response from the DOH. “And we push them, and push them, and push them, and all we get is lip service,” he said.
Monongalia County Commissioner Tom Bloom addressed residents on behalf of the commission, where he told residents that a meeting will be scheduled with DOH representatives sometime in April. The meeting will take place in the county commission chambers, and residents are encouraged to come up with a detailed list of concerns so a long-term solution can be offered. With some reports of confrontations taking place on Mayfield Road over traffic disputes, it should lead to some sort of discussion.
“The commissioners have allowed me to be the liaison when I talk with the DOH, but I think that’s a great idea,” said Bloom in response to residents calling for the meeting. “Especially with the confrontations that are going on, that’s also the concern that we have,” he said.