Stretch Of Interstate 80 In Fairfield A Magnet For Crashes
FAIRFIELD (CBS13) — Three high-profile crashes have happened along Interstate 80 in the same area, in less than a month.
Westbound Interstate 80, just east of the Manuel Campos Parkway exit, seems to be a hot spot for major accidents. It's the same area where a Fairfield California Highway Patrol officer was hit and killed several weeks ago.
RELATED: CHP: Distracted Driver Injures Caltrans Contractors On Interstate 80
It was a miraculous escape for one driver, whose car was engulfed in flames after a nasty crash this weekend on Westbound I-80, east of Manuel Campos Parkway.
Last week, a distracted truck driver hit and injured Caltrans contractors. Just a few weeks earlier, Solano County CHP Officer Kirk Griess and a driver he had pulled over were hit and killed. The suspect is a Rocklin man who police say was distracted.
RELATED: CHP: Distracted Driver Killed Officer, Man In Traffic Stop
We hit the streets and asked locals, is this stretch of I-80 a problem?
"This stretch of freeway, there's a lot of bad driving behavior, a lot of speeding, a lot of weaving in and out of traffic," said one driver.
"They be flyin' going through there," said another.
"I feel like it's cursed, and that's my exit," said Sakinah Kemp.
Kemp commutes through that part of I-80 each day. She says there's a blind hill approaching Manuel Campos Parkway, and that's where she says the problem is.
"Those three lanes before that slow lane, they are braking and anticipating what's over that hill that they can't see," Kemp added.
Other drivers CBS13 spoke to have their own explanation for why they believe that part of I-80 is pretty sketchy.
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"A lot of people hurry up and rush on that left side, cut all the way to the right side just so they can get off that exit to beat the trucks," said Kemp.
Three horrific crashes in a three-week period all share a common location. Drivers are now calling for safety measures to be put in place before another tragedy happens.
"Maybe put up more signs, maybe how much further the exit is going to be, or, maybe more reflectors," said Edward Barton.
CBS13 reached out to the California Highway Patrol for their comment about why this stretch of the freeway is so dangerous, but have not received a response.
