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Downtown Macon business owner says red-light runners and speeders are 'Driving Me Crazy!'

A Macon club owner says he's had enough with red-light runners and speeders at the intersection of Cherry Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.

MACON, Ga. — We all use Central Georgia's roads to get around, but sometimes there are things that drive us crazy. Whether it's a stubborn pothole or an intersection that needs a traffic light, we're listening to your road problems and getting answers from local and state officials in our new series "Driving Me Crazy."

Wes Nobles is the owner of Late Nite dance club near the corner of Cherry Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard in downtown Macon. 

He says the amount of speeders and red-light runners at the intersection puts people in danger, and it drives him crazy!

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Nobles opened his business more than a year ago.

"This is just more of a commercially-traveled intersection, and people are just completely disregarding the law," Nobles said. "We see people all the time, like getting out of the crosswalk, you know cause they're scared... It's a dangerous intersection."

He worries for his customers and anyone crossing the street. Nobles says it's a problem, but he also has a possible solution.

"If they could put in a study that wouldn't cost very much, just to install two traffic cameras and see how many people are actually running red lights, they could probably get an estimate of how much revenue they could generate," Nobles said.

We took Nobles' idea to Lieutenant Scott Davis with the Bibb County Sheriff's Office and county Commissioner Joe Allen.

"We have to step in and do what's right, and this is the right thing to do, put red light cameras in, and then look at the speed," Allen said.

Davis talked about putting deputies on patrol there.

"Put a couple of traffic guys out here, couple deputies out here, they're going to enforce it," Davis said.

Even during the short interview with Davis, two separate drivers ran the red light or cut it close through the yellow.

"People completely disregarding yellow lights, and people run red lights, and it's mostly these trucks, these big trucks that have a lot of mass, and they just don't want to stop," Nobles said.

Davis says it's all about making people more aware.

"Through enforcement and education, whether it be a citation, whether it be warning, that individual will be educated, be more cognizant," Davis said.

Allen pushed for traffic cameras about a year ago, but the commissioner board tabled it. He says he's planning to bring it back into discussion and see it carried out before he leaves his seat in December.

"We put them on notice, you hit people in the pocketbook. Once you hit them in the pocketbook, they're going to start thinking about it, and they're going to slow their rear ends down," Allen said.

If there's something on the road that's driving you crazy, we want to hear from you. Send an email to news@13wmaz.com or message us on Facebook.

Tune in next Monday, February 17 to 13WMAZ Morning at 6 a.m. to hear what else is "Driving Me Crazy!"

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