Residents in east Charlotte want safer conditions on dangerous stretch of road

CHARLOTTE — News numbers show some of Charlotte’s deadliest roads and neighbors told Channel 9′s Anthony Kustura that they want change.

Neighbors who live along The Plaza in east Charlotte said cars come flying down the road. Diamond Swanson said she’s seen dozens of crashes since she moved in seven years ago.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just released data from 2018 to 2020. It said the two-mile stretch of The Plaza between Ilford and East 36th streets is one of the most dangerous roads in Charlotte.

There were six deadly crashes there in just those two years.

Malik Haywood lives nearby and sees the danger every day. Even when the crashes aren’t deadly, they can still be dangerous and destructive.

“There is an influx of cars,” he said.

The pastor of the Vietnamese Alliance Church said he’s had at least four cars crash on his property in just two years.

Swanson said another driver almost crashed into her house recently, but stopped short. She said she would like to see more police patrols and even speed bumps.

The posted speed limit is 35 miles per hour, but she said drivers go well above 50.

“It’s a risk that we have to take every day,” she said.

Kustura took the traffic concerns straight to the city, and the Charlotte Department of Transportation said it’s studying the stretch and evaluating it for improvements.

Meanwhile, Haywood is asking drivers to take it slow as his niece prepares to take the wheel on her own.

“Be safe, be cautious,” he said. “‘Lead by example,’ is the best way I can say it.”

(WATCH BELOW: Head-on crash along Burke County highway has drivers asking for safety precautions)

Head-on crash along Burke County highway has drivers asking for safety precautions

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