Drivers Want Confusion Cleared Up At 31st And Utica Intersection

Drivers are voicing their concerns about the 31st and Utica intersection.

They say they’ve seen more crashes and more traffic, and that something needs to be done to clear up the confusion.

It’s a five-way intersection next to a side road with a yield sign for drivers coming from the north and going west on 31st Street. Plus, with nearby Riverside Drive being shut down, there is now more traffic coming through the midtown intersection.

Those are just a few of the problems causing drivers some major headaches.

Don Wood has lived in the Bren Rose neighborhood next to the intersection of 31st and Utica for 18 years. He remembers the way it used to be at the intersection before new traffic signals and signs were put in to simplify things.

But Wood said nothing was ever really fixed.

“You hear people honking every day you're out here because people trying to go straight in the right lane are jockeying for position with people who think they are supposed to be going through the intersection and then curving to left, so they're both trying to follow the same road,” he said.

You can also see where there is some confusion if you're driving south on Utica - at the 31st Street light, you have the option of going straight, turning a little bit left and going into the neighborhood, or making the full 90-degree turn to go east on 31st Street.

Patrick Bruce lives and works in the area and said he tries to avoid the intersection at all costs.

“I do avoid it going north and south because even when you get past that intersection it’s a lot of narrow, wavy roads. I just avoid it. I take Harvard or Lewis,” he said.

Bruce said he often has his wife and kids in the car with him and it’s just easier and safer to take another route.

We called the City and they told us they haven’t had anyone complain about the 31st and Utica intersection but said they welcome feedback - all you need to do is call their 311 hotline and tell them what you think.