A car waits at a red light on L Street while vehicles flow past on 24th Street.

For anyone who has taken a deep breath, held it, and gunned across 24^th Street on L Street – you can breath easy.

A new traffic signal now holds back those vehicles speeding off of Highway 178 so drivers – and pedestrians – can safely cross the four-lane road.

After just three weeks of construction, workers

This Google map shows the intersection at 24th and L streets where a new traffic signal has been installed.

completed the installation and flipped on the signals Monday, Aug. 10. The intersection is surrounded by Chevron, Starbucks in the Village at Towne Center, and two auto repair shops.

The location has been notorious for accidents, says Lori Friday, whose repair shop, TGIF (Thank Goodness It’s Fixed), has occupied the northwest corner for 20 years.

“It was crazy,” she said Wednesday afternoon.

Vehicles on 24th Street stop at the new traffic signal while vehicles on L Street get the green light.

“Sometimes there would be two accidents in one day. We’d hear screeching, then these big collisions. You could judge how bad it was by how loud it was.”

But Wednesday afternoon, as she watched the organized flow of vehicles, she felt relieved.

“I think it’s going to be a lot better now,” she said.

Cars safely cross 24th Street going south on L Street thanks to the new signals.

According to Caltrans, which footed about one-third of the $275,000 bill for the signals, the project changed to a “safety project” after a three-year study from 2004 to 2006 showed 36 accidents at that intersection. That averaged about one accident per month.

“It initially was going to be an operational project

Pedestrians can also cross L and 24th streets safely using to the new crosswalks.

because there was enough of a traffic count to warrant it,” said Holly Vogel, a public information officer for Caltrans based in Bakersfield. “But when we started looking at the number of accidents, we saw it was a problematic intersection, so it became a safety project.”

Most of the accidents were broadsides from vehicles coming off of the freeway and hitting others who were trying to cross or turn onto 24^th Street from L Street, she said.

The City of Bakersfield split the cost of the project, paying $180,000 while Caltrans paid $95,000, Vogel said. The work was done by TDS Engineering of Westlake Village.

Over at Starbucks Wednesday afternoon, people relaxed in the shade with iced drinks near the flow of traffic. Fritz Nolan said the intersection was dangerous for him when he used to drive into town on Highway 178 returning from classes at Bakersfield College.

“I’d be flying off the freeway … and people used to just pull right through the intersection in front of me,” he said. “Now the lights are forcing them to stop and wait and then go.”

As part of the construction, a short lane between the Chevron gas station and 24^th Street has been filled in with a giant sidewalk. The lane used to help vehicles turning left from L Street to merge onto 24^th Street. But that also presented a safety hazard, Vogel said.

“It was a sight distance issue. If you were trying to merge, you had to look over your shoulder and with the curve behind you it was hard to see,” Vogel said.

Eva Wilkins, who was also at Starbucks, said she used to use the merge lane instead of contending with the intersection. But now that the traffic signal has been installed, it’s no longer an issue.

“At the crossing, I’d sit there for like 20 minutes waiting for the opportunity to cross,” she said. “This is probably a lot safer now.”

Wednesday afternoon, the caution tape was still up around the new sidewalk, but pedestrians could use the freshly painted crosswalks and workers loaded up the last of the equipment. Soon, there will be no signs of new construction – only vehicles stopping, waiting and then going.