JACKSON, Miss. ( WJTV ) – Officials with the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) said drivers across the state face increasing challenges at intersections as traffic volumes rise and congestion worsens.

MDOT has implemented innovative solutions, including Restricted Crossing U-turns. Officials said a Restricted Crossing U-turn (RCUT) is a safe and effective way to get drivers across a busy intersection.

At an RCUT, also known as a J-Turn, drivers on the minor road wanting to make a left turn or proceed straight through the intersection must turn right onto the main road and then make a U-turn at a median crossover located downstream from the intersection. The path for drivers exiting the main road and turning left onto the minor road remains unchanged. With an RCUT, vehicles turn with the flow of traffic, reducing crashes and increasing throughput of the intersection.

According to MDOT, there are several benefits of RCUTs at an intersection:

• Improves safety by reducing the number of conflict points from 32 to 18.
• Reduction in crashes resulting in fatalities and serious injuries.
• Improved efficiency by increasing network intersection travel time by 40 percent.
• More cost-effective than an interchange. In some states, it has been shown that 10 to 20 reduced-conflict intersections can be built for the same cost as one regular interchange.

“Our mission at MDOT is to create the safest and most efficient ways for Mississippians to travel,” said MDOT Executive Director Brad White. “By installing RCUTs at dangerous intersections, we can accomplish both of those goals.”

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