The state Department of Transportation is restructuring an intersection in Hebron after a 22-year-old was killed in a crash there last month.
Chris Passera was heading home from work on Route 316 when another car collided with his at the intersection of Route 66 in Hebron. While state police are still investigating the crash, Passera's father believes tall snow banks and flashing stop lights contributed.
"If one of those factors wasn't a factor, he'd be alive today," said the older Christopher Passera.
He reached out to the town and state, and on Tuesday, the DOT announced the lights will no longer flash overnight.
The DOT said it considers several factors when programming flashing lights, including traffic patterns, crash data and input from the town.
DOT officials said they decided to honor the town's request but warned of federal guidelines that say "unjustified traffic signals can result in... disobedience of the signal indications and significant increases in the frequency of collisions."
Christopher Passera, on the other hand, says the news is a small victory. He wants the DOT to do away with the flashing light operation statewide during the winter months.
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"If it's good enough for this light, it's good enough for all lights," he said. "Let's do something with a sight-line issue. Let's do something with the lights."
The Hebron town manager said that although the change was warranted at this intersection, he doesn't believe it's the case with the town's other flashing lights.
Passera countered that making an across-the-board change would be worthwhile if it saves even one life.
