Many motorists are seeing a new safety addition at the intersection of Anchor Lake Road and Lumpkin Road. The Pearl River County Road Department recently installed a four-way stop at the intersection to ensure traffic moves safely.

Road Department Manager Charlie Schielder said they installed the signs after County Engineer Les Dungan conducted a study on the high traffic area that revealed a four-way stop was warranted.

“There were a lot of accidents there and a lot of concerned citizens and fire departments were calling in about it,” Schielder said.

Previously the intersection was a two-way stop, with traffic flowing freely down Anchor Lake Road, Schielder said.

The Pearl River County Board of Supervisors worked with Dungan and the road department to install the four-way stop.

At a board meeting in May, PRC District V Supervisor Sandy Kane Smith said the stop signs could decrease the number of accidents.

“There’s a lot of accidents that occur there because it is a high traffic area so we want to put these signs up to avoid any issues,” Smith said in a previous story.

Following the board’s request, Dungan conducted the study, which found enough traffic on both roadways to require a four-way stop.

“I found that the number of vehicles traveling on Lumpkin Road equaled or exceeded the total number of vehicles traveling on Anchor Lake Road,” Dungan said. “I advised the supervisors that the intersection did warrant control of a four-way stop.”

To help ease the transition to the four-way stop, warning signs and markers have been installed to aid motorists, Schielder said.

Currently, the county isn’t working on installing other four-way stops at other intersections, Dungan said.

Following the installation of the four-way stop, the road department is working on several projects countywide, including asphalt overlay on McNeill Steep Hollow Road in Poplarville, Schielder said.

“There are some soft spots where the road is sinking so we’re going to put some asphalt overlay and base repairs,” Schielder said.

The project is estimated to be complete in a month. No traffic closures will be implemented, Schielder said.