If you drove near one of Greensboro’s busiest intersections on Friday, Jan. 20, then you were probably – like many others passing by – amazed at the number of Duke Energy workers, Greensboro road crews and police officers in the area conducting a repair operation that left the intersection the scene of intense traffic disruption all day long and well into the night.

The intersection where three major roads come together – Cornwallis, Battleground, and Lawndale – was thrust into chaos sometime early on Jan. 20 when a hit-and-run driver crashed into a power pole and then fled the scene in his or her car.

While the car remained in operating condition, the power pole wasn’t so lucky.

Duke Energy Government and Community Relations Manager Hank Henning – who is a former Guilford County commissioner – said on Monday, Jan. 23 that after crash had occurred the power pole needed immediate repair.  Henning said that the City of Greensboro workers came out to work on the multiple strings of traffic lights that serve the complex intersection.

One worker on the scene, when asked about the situation Friday, said that the presence was so great because of concerns that the pole would fall over and do a lot of secondary damage to the traffic lights, other poles and wire systems at the intersection.

From Friday morning until nearly late Friday night, the crews continued to work and by midnight traffic was flowing normally through the intersection once again.

Throughout the day, police were directing traffic on alternative routes and many drivers who approached the site of the chaos either made U-turns or turned off early onto side roads to avoid the clearly visible giant traffic jams at the scene.

 

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