Submitted Photo The intersection at Route 83 and Center Road has been the site of a number of crashes.

At first, Lisa Keller thought the booming sound that had just come from the intersection of Route 83 and Center Road the night of Dec. 3 was from a DOT truck dropping its plow on the pavement.

But temperatures had reached 50 degrees that day, and the air was still mild outside her town of Arkwright home.

“We thought there’s no reason for a snowplow on the road right now, so we should go check that out,” Keller told the OBSERVER.

At about 10:40 p.m. Keller and her husband went outside and discovered a two-vehicle crash involving a 2018 Ford F-150 and 2020 Chevrolet Trail Blazer. The major collision resulted in the death of a 71-year-old South Dayton woman while others were seriously injured.

Witness to numerous crashes and aware of many others, Keller decided to contact the state the Monday after the fatal collision to express her concerns with the intersection. She asked that the county also be contacted to relay her message.

“Someone’s gotta say something,” she said. “I’m not going to let this woman’s death go in vain.”

According to the New York State Police, Linda Kraemer was a passenger in the Ford F-150 that was traveling west on Route 83 the night of Dec. 3 when the truck was hit by the Chevrolet Trail Blazer.

The sport utility vehicle was traveling south on Center Road when, according to the State Police, the driver “failed to stop at the stop sign” when it collided with the pickup.

Kraemer was pronounced dead at the scene.

Meanwhile, Randall Rolison, the operator of the Trail Blazer, remains hospitalized due to the severity of his injuries. No charges have been announced, though an investigation remains ongoing.

Keller estimates there are two to four accidents a year of varying degree at the intersection of Route 83, a New York state road, and Center Road, a county-maintained route.

She doesn’t believe there’s a common pattern with the crashes, though she noted the 55 mph speed limit throughout with stop signs on Center.

“I don’t know if there’s an actual pattern, but it’s never on-coming. It’s usually cross,” she said. “I think it’s a cross-traffic thing.”

She added, “I think it’s people not giving way in general. We do get a lot of fog up here usually at the top of the hill … and when people come over, I think that might have something at play. But it’s not always a foggy day.”

Lisa Waldron, Arkwright highway superintendent, told Town Board members this month that the state Department of Transportation planned to survey the area to evaluate its options. Among the possibilities, Waldron said, include the implementation of blinking lights near the intersection and added streetlights.

“We’re all together working on this and everybody is coming up with the best way to go about it,” Waldron said. “(The state is) pushing to get something more done there.”

Keller said a reduction in the speed limit would make sense for the intersection. In addition to the crashes, she noted the difficulties in leaving and entering her driveway due to its location on Center, just off Route 83.

“To me, a start would be reduction in speed,” she said. “(A) flashing light would be great, and I don’t relish having blinking lights in front of my house 24 hours a day, but I’d rather have that than people getting hurt and dying.”