Statistics tell the story, The intersection at U.S. Hwy, 24 and Paradise Lodge Lane in Woodland Park is one dangerous place.

The problem is the yellow arrow on the traffic light for cars traveling east on “24” and turning left at the intersection. When the light shows a green arrow, it’s safe to turn left. When the light changes to yellow, some drivers hope to beat the oncoming traffic to make the turn.

Too many don’t.

“It’s driver error, texting or inattention,” said Woodland Park Police Chief Chris Deisler.

For instance, within a 24-hour period in July, the police responded to five accidents at the intersection. In one of them, the drivers took out a traffic control box on the street corner.  

“There have been several injuries at the intersection but no deaths,” Deisler said.

The driver error piece includes another factor.

“It’s ignorance of the law on yellow lights,” Deisler said. “Drivers think opposing traffic has a red light.”

During the week of July 20, the Colorado Department of Transportation changed the length of the yellow light to about one second, maybe ½ of a second, before the arrow turns red.

The change is the result of CDOT’s reading the report from the police department.

“CDOT was incredibly responsive,” Deisler said.