Residents, first responders and lawmakers press for quick fixes on deadly US 395 corridor

PASCO, Wash. — Residents, emergency responders and elected officials met Wednesday in Franklin County to press for swift action on a seven‑mile stretch of U.S. Highway 395 north of Pasco that locals say has produced an unusually high number of fatal crashes.

The public forum, convened by county leaders and the region’s legislative delegation, drew farmers, business owners, retired troopers and crash survivors who described repeated, sometimes fatal collisions at intersections such as Crestlock, Vineyard, Foster Wells and near the Country Mercantile. "This is where your role becomes critical, everybody's role," said Madeline Johnson, a survivor who described life‑altering injuries and trauma from an October 2023 crash that killed two people.

Why it matters: The corridor mixes high‑speed freight traffic and commuter flows with slow‑moving agricultural equipment and frequent turning movements. Speakers and panelists framed the problem as a combination of roadway design, rising traffic volumes and limited enforcement capacity — not solely driver error — and pressed for both low‑cost immediate changes and larger, engineering‑heavy projects.

Proposed short‑term fixes discussed included installing traffic signals or flashing advance warning lights at more crossings, using frontage roads or closing low‑need crossways (one farmer suggested closing the Foster Wells crossing), and targeted signage or speed reductions enforced by increased State Patrol presence. "Every one of [these crashes] is preventable," said Captain Wilson of the Washington State Patrol, who emphasized driver behavior and education while warning that enforcement alone would not solve system design failures.

Longer‑term ideas included restricted crossing U‑turn (RCUT) intersections, roundabouts, grade separations and a corridor‑scale bypass or overpasses. A panel member described a technical brief on RCUTs and cited published results suggesting roughly 30% reductions in crash rates and up to 50% reductions in fatal crash rates when RCUTs (and signals) are used, a proposal several community members asked officials to study further.

Responder and community tolls: Fire and EMS leaders described frequent, traumatic calls and rising mental‑health strain among volunteers and career staff. "I've been on seven fatal accidents in three weeks," said a local captain, underscoring the cumulative toll on responders who must repeatedly process catastrophic scenes.

What officials pledged: Legislators and county leaders said they would use written and spoken testimony from the forum to press WSDOT and state budget leaders for short‑term mitigations while advancing longer‑term funding requests. Panelists asked attendees to sign a contact sheet to receive hearing notices and to submit testimony for upcoming transportation budget hearings; officials said an actionable plan and coordinated outreach to federal partners would follow in the coming weeks.

What was not decided: No formal votes or appropriations were made at the workshop. Multiple speakers warned that overpasses and other capital projects will take years and significant funding, so the community urged attention to immediately implementable changes.

Next steps: County staff and legislators said they will compile the community's testimony, share it with WSDOT and the Washington State Patrol, and pursue short‑term engineering and enforcement options while preparing requests for the state transportation budget and federal assistance.

— Reporting from the Franklin County public workshop on US 395 safety. Quotes and accounts come from attendees and panelists at the recorded workshop.