TOWN OF MERTON, Wis. — After witnessing a serious crash and rushing to help at the intersection of Highway 164 and Plainview Road, a Town of Merton resident is speaking out about her safety concerns and the slow pace of planned improvements.
"Over the course of living there, we saw progressively more serious accidents, and it kind of evolved from being a nuisance to a real concern for us," said Kristen Fox.
Fox, a family physician, has witnessed multiple crashes and the aftermath firsthand, including one particularly frightening incident last summer.
"I heard this huge loud crash, and all of a sudden I saw this huge large sedan flipping in the air right across my field of vision. I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, this is serious,'" Fox said.
When Fox saw the overturned vehicle with a father and a middle school-aged child trapped inside, her medical training kicked in.
Watch: Town of Merton resident speaks out after a couple of dangerous crashes
"The sedan was upside down, there was a dad and middle school-age child in the car, fortunately, everyone was okay and talking," Fox said. "We were able to provide some aid and keep them stabilized until help could get there."
After this alarming incident, Fox took action by contacting her lawmakers and filing a formal written complaint with the highway department. When she received only acknowledgment that officials were "studying the problem" but no concrete timeline for improvements, she reached out to TMJ4.
"I figured maybe you guys could help," Fox said.
When TMJ4 investigated the intersection, we found crash debris scattered on all sides of the road. State data from Community Maps reveals that at least 20 crashes have been reported at this intersection over the past two and a half years, with half resulting in injuries.
We contacted state transportation officials about the community's concerns. They confirmed plans to redesign the intersection and add traffic signals, but the timeline remains uncertain. While officials told Fox that construction might not begin until 2027, they informed TMJ4 that the project could potentially start next year if pending funding is approved.
For Fox and other concerned residents, even a one-year wait feels too long.
"To me, when I hear 2027, how many more people are going to get hurt, how many more accidents are going to happen until we can fix the problem," Fox said
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
