Traffic moved normally at the intersection of N.C. Highway 54 and Farrington Road near Durham on Friday.
All lanes of the busy roadway reopened more than 19 hours after police say a car hit a utility pole and knocked down power lines on Thursday. The crash left the driver with life-threatening injuries, according to the Durham Police Department.
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Drivers were caught in backups for miles during the evening commute on Thursday. Motorists in the area say crashes are nothing new near the intersection, leaving some calling for change.
"Why in the world they don't expand it? I don't know," said John Kline. "Unfortunately, things like that happen, not quite to that significance when they cut everything off."
The latest traffic count data from the North Carolina Department of Transportation shows an average of 43,000 drivers use the stretch of NC 54 daily.
A department spokesperson says there have been 40 reported crashes at the intersection from 2020 to 2024. Kline believes increased development in the area has put more drivers on the road.
"You come here around five o'clock, you have to wait up at the light quite a long time, even in the best of circumstances," he said.
In an email to WRAL, an NCDOT spokesperson said improvements are planned for the stretch of Highway 54 near where the crash happened. But that project is not set to begin until 2033.
"There is a project in the North Carolina STIP (State Transportation Improvement Program) that will provide interchange improvements, including upgrade of N.C. 54 from east of Little Creek to east of I-40," said the DOT spokesperson. "Corridor improvements being considered involve a variety of strategies such as roadway widening, intersection improvements, overpasses, and interchange upgrades."
In the meantime, Kline says he'll find other way of getting around.
"That's why, shoot, the bicycle is much better transportation than a car," said Kline.
Durham investigators have not released a cause of Thursday's crash.
