WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. -- Major safety improvements are on the way to an intersection near Hebron. Neighbors say the upgrades are long overdue.
The Maryland Department of Transportation is planning a $3.5 million project at the intersection of Route 50 and Old Railroad Road. The work includes installing a new traffic signal, updating signage and improving pavement markings.
For people who live and work nearby, the intersection has long been a concern.
Danielle Covey has worked at a daycare about 50 yards from the intersection for the past 12 years and says dangerous situations are common.
"Very dangerous, we hear accidents all the time with people crossing and people coming from all different directions," said Covey.
It's gotten to the point where Covey has started taking alternate routes on her commute home.
"I take the backroads to go home because I want to avoid this intersection at all costs, because I feel like it's not safe," said Covey. "I feel like if they put a light here, now I can use the intersection more."
Currently, drivers on Old Railroad Road face limited signage and must cross or turn into multiple lanes of traffic on Route 50, with no traffic signal to control oncoming traffic.
"It's a great idea that they're putting up a traffic light," said Dana Edmonston. "I went to school in Mardela, so, I'm very well traveled around here and it's been, yeah, a bad intersection for years."
MDOT says the new traffic signal will control traffic in all directions, except for right-turn lanes from Old Railroad Road onto Route 50.
According to data MDOT provided to WBOC, there have been 54 crashes at the intersection since 2019. 18 of those resulted in injuries, and one was fatal.
MDOT says the work should wrap up by the end of 2026, but, as with many road projects, weather always plays a role.