Mississippi Department of Transportation said Friday they havetaken some steps to improve safety at the Laird’s Crossingintersection on Highway 84 and are continuing to monitor thesituation.

Darrell Broome, MDOT district engineer, told the county board ofsupervisors that oversized reduce speed advisory signs and speedbumps have been installed around the intersection where one trafficfatality occurred shortly after a new part of Highway 84 was openedfor four-lane traffic.

The engineer said areas around the intersection have been mowedand officials are making effort to ensure “visibility is as good aspossible.”

Broome said officials considered making the area a school zone,but the intersection is too far from West Lincoln School. Also, theintersection’s traffic count is well-below the totals needed towarrant additional controls.

While mentioning planned efforts to help motorists better judgedistance at the intersection, Broome indicated drivers need to paymore attention there.

“The biggest thing is people need to stop at the stop sign,”Broome said.

Wayne Brown, Southern District Transportation Commissioner,agreed.

“People are not stopping,” he said. “We’ve got to teach them tostop.”

Broome said officials are planning surveillance of theintersection in the future.

“We’re going to do anything we can to make that safe,” Broomesaid.

Lengths of school buses and other large vehicles have also beenmentioned as a safety concern. Broome said some stripingmodifications around the median will address that issue.

“We think that’s going to do a good job, and we’re going tocontinue to monitor it,” Broome said.

In other transportation matters, Brown told supervisors that the1987 four-lane program is moving along slowly. He did, though,expect all projects to be under contract within a few years andcompletion on some aspects in four to five years.

In road funding matters, Brown said the state owes a debt ofgratitude to its congressional delegation for increasing money thestate receives from fuel taxes. Brown said Mississippi’s federaltransportation funds have more than doubled in the last four yearsfrom around $160 million to over $300 million.

Federal funds for bridge replacement projects may also beincreasing in the near future, Brown said. The commissioner saidprojects are awarded as funding permits, and he encouragedsupervisors to have bridge replacement project plans ready shouldfunds become available.

“Right now, it looks real promising,” Brown said.

Pointing out a bright green and yellow Keep Lincoln CountyBeautiful sign in the board room, Brown also complimentedsupervisors on efforts to keep litter off county roads. He saidLincoln County was a beautiful county, and he wished others wouldbe as attentive to addressing litter problems.

“It’s just killing us,” Brown said about litter on roadways.