A car, headed east along 182nd Avenue East, approached the newly-redesigned intersection at Sumner-Buckley Highway, slowed and turned into the Bonney Lake Auto Parts parking lot.

But the driver was not there to shop. Instead, the car pulled through the lot, paused and waited to make a left turn on to Sumner-Buckley.

Since the new c-curb was installed blocking left turns on to and off of 182nd, it has become a fairly regular occurrence, prompting complaints to at least one member of the Bonney Lake City Council.

Councilwoman Laurie Carter addressed the problem during the open discussion section of the June 1 council workshop, asking if anything can be done to prevent people from cutting through lots or simply driving over the curb, including delivery trucks for the businesses located at the corner.

The c-curb preventing turns has been in place since the intersection opened as a way to deal with what Public Works Director Dan Grigsby called a “serious traffic problem” at the five-legged intersection.

“They’re at a five-legged intersection and five-legged intersections always create greater risk for motorists,” Grigsby said June 2.

Grigsby said the biggest safety concern is drivers making a left turn on to 182nd having to stop as soon as they came around the corner and wait for traffic to clear, creating a backup that could impact other drivers and potentially clog the intersection at state Route 410.

“That was a big public safety issue,” he said.

Grigsby said the city anticipated there would be difficulties for drivers when the new intersection was completed, but the public safety issues of changing the intersection outweighed the inconvenience.

“The re-occurring customers figure it out,” Grigsby said, calling the new configuration “the most reasonable approach.”

Because of the c-curb, however, drivers are being asked to change their routes to and from 182nd Avenue East. Drivers are asked to turn on to Main Street and then either follow the new Main Street Extension through to its connector at 182nd or to make the left turn at Sumner-Buckley and a right on to 182nd from there.

For drivers coming off of 182nd looking to make a left on to Sumner-Buckley, the new route is to head up the hill and come down the Main Street extension to the new intersection.

Grigsby said the city would launch a new public education campaign to explain the new routes. He also said the city, which owns the right-of-way around Bonney Lake Auto Parts, would soon put up barriers to try and prevent people from cutting through the lot.

“We are going to put concrete blocks along the frontage of the auto parts store,” he said, adding that when Phase II of the intersection is completed, curbs and gutters would be added to that section of the roadway. Phase II is presently on hold because of funding issues.

Cutting through a business lot is not illegal in Bonney Lake, according to Police Chief Mike Mitchell, who at the workshop suggested adding such an ordinance to the books, something to which the council seemed receptive.

But while there have been some complaints, Bonney Lake Auto Parts Owner Mike Pate said the cut-throughs have not been that bad and are not disruptive.

“It isn’t as bad as they make it out to be,” Pate said. “It’s not that big a problem.”

Pate said, overall, adjustment to the new intersection has been better than expected and he has not heard complaints from customers trying to get to the shop.

“At least everything is not plugged up at the intersection,” he said.