Hwy 165 Traffic Light Dangers

A traffic light on Hwy 165 caught the attention of a local citizen after he had left the carwash located at Ruffin Dr. and Hwy 165 in Monroe, LA. The individual said that as he approached the light, he noticed that it was green. But before proceeding to move on, he happened to notice that the light controlling the north-south traffic flow was also green. He knew something was wrong because all the traffic lights on the stop signals were green. The individual waited until the north-south flow cleared enough for him to cross Hwy 165. He wasn’t sure what might have caused the lights to malfunction, but he knew it was a dangerous situation at the intersection.

The next day, he went to City Hall hoping to see someone in the mayor’s office or from the engineering department to explain what he experienced on Hwy 165 South. He couldn’t find anyone at City Hall and wasn’t given any assurance that "someone would look" into his concerns, so he left. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad could happen because it wasn’t the first time the traffic lights at that location malfunctioned.

After the latest incident on January 6, 2024, he expressed concerns. He knew that many southside residents frequent the 165 corridor, and there is a tremendous amount of traffic on Hwy 165 bypass every day. Not everyone may be paying attention to the traffic lights if they think none of them will malfunction. He just wanted to bring his concerns to the attention of city leaders because as things stand now, it's like "a terrible accident waiting to happen." He hoped someone in the city engineering department, as well as the state transportation department, would look into the traffic light system.

He also had concerns about the number of traffic lights on Hwy 165 bypass beginning at Winnsboro Rd. throughout Monroe city limits. They seem to be close together when the speed limit is 50 mph. There is one particular stretch of Hwy 165 bypass from Renwick St. to the traffic light by the Coca-Cola plant where drivers seem to think it's part of I-20, judging by how fast many travel. But he said that from now on, he will be more attentive when approaching the traffic light at/near Hwy 165 bypass and Ruffin Dr.