Signal, not roundabout, to be installed at crash-plagued intersection

The intersection of highways NN and Y and Pleasant Valley Road in the Town of Cedarburg, which has been the scene of several serious crashes over the years, including a fatal crash last year, would get a traffic signal under a plan approved last week by a county committee.

A study last year reported that closing Pleasant Valley Road on the east side of Highway NN and installing traffic signals or a roundabout could significantly improve safety there.

The study by Traffic Analysis and Design Inc. (TADI) found 24 non-deer crashes had occurred there from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 31, 2018.

The study also noted that two severe crashes, including one that was fatal, occurred in 2019 and were not included in the study.

The fatal crash occurred on July 3 when Adam Gertz, 19, of Mequon allegedly ran a stop sign on Highway NN while heading north on Highway Y and struck a car driven by 56-year-old Glenn Lewis of Cedarburg.

Gertz was charged on Dec. 23 with homicide by negligent use of a vehicle, a felony. He is free on a $25,000 signature bond and, according to court documents, serving in the National Guard. He is next due in court on July 9. Gertz has pleaded not guilty.

Highway NN at that intersection travels northwest from the Five Corners area in Cedarburg while Highway Y, or Granville Road, is north-south. Pleasant Valley Road goes east-west across Highway Y and then crosses Highway NN, creating a triangular property on which a business sits.

Ozaukee County Public Works Director Jon Edgren said Pleasant Valley Road between Highway NN and Highway Y would serve only as a driveway for the business.

Installing a roundabout there would cost about $1.8 million while traffic signals would cost a little over $1 million, Edgren told Public Works Committee members.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety Improvement Program would cover 90% of the cost, leaving the county to spend $105,000 over a three-year period, Edgren said.

An agreement with the Town of Cedarburg will need to be reached to close Pleasant Valley at that point, he said.

Edgren said he hopes construction will start in 2022.