Police Chief: Mimosa Lane, Bypass closure needed for 'dangerous' intersection

During a May 20 chat session, Tahlequah Police Chief Nate King updated the public on call numbers for May and reminded drivers of Tuesday's change to the "most dangerous" intersection.

Officers have logged 2,783 calls for service; close to 859 building checks; about 236 citizen contacts that includes pedestrian stops; 29 thefts; 10 burglaries; 40 arrests; and 50 vehicle crashes.

"We are averaging two accidents a day and that's pretty high for Tahlequah so we're going to do some things to help with that and we need you to do some things to help with that," King said. "We need you to pay a little bit more attention, drive a little slower, make sure it's clear before you perceive from a stop sign, stop light, things of that nature."

King added that officers will be working traffic in "strategic areas" in hopes of slowing drivers down.

"That's a high number of accidents. We had a high number last month also [and] some of that is the construction. Just a lot of things to navigate in Tahlequah right now," he said.

King praised Officer Caleb Murray, who responded to reports of several car burglaries and made an arrest of a Fort Gibson man.

King touched on a big change that is coming to Tahlequah and that's the closure of the intersection at Mimosa Lane and State Highway 51 Bypass from the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

"Mimosa Lane, which is in front of the Mustard Seed, your main entrance to McDonald's, starting [May 21], that will be right-turn only if you're approaching the Bypass on Mimosa from either side. Now if you're on the Bypass, you'll be able to turn left across one side of traffic but you won't be able to turn left from Mimosa going across the Bypass," King said.

Criticism as to the change being an inconvenience to drivers has been voiced by some but King said it's, statistically, the "most dangerous" intersection in Tahlequah.

"We have more injury accidents there than any other intersection in the city limits of Tahlequah," he said.

King said he's received emails regarding the department's new radar trailer and it will be relocated sometime this week. The trailer is currently posted on Stick Ross Mountain Road, between the Bypass and Fourth Street.

"The highest radar vehicle in its current location was 116 mph, was the high radar speed. The good side of that is 85 percent of the cars that the radar trailer has captured has been below what we would consider citation speed, below 5 mph over the speed limit," he said.