Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Shrouded in a dark history of vehicular accidents, including seven this year, a treacherous bend on Basilone Road known as "Dead Man's Curve" is being redesigned in hopes of reducing its human toll.A contract was awarded to Vasquez Marshall, a consulting firm, and others to do a preliminary study on the curve and estimate the cost of taming it."Engineers, biologists and other technical folks that we will hire by contract will do a preliminary analysis to give us a good feel of which one of three or four alternatives will be most cost-effective and have the least impact on the environment," said Steven R. Wolfe, deputy public works officer.The cost of the study could range from $50,000 to $100,000 and the project's estimated cost is $4 million to $6 million. Road construction will begin when the price is determined.The planning phase, which includes design and environmental work, was slated to begin right away, Wolfe said.Meantime, to create a safer drive along "Dead Man's Curve," officials have added a series of guardrail sections and lights."We made some immediate safety improvements," Wolfe said."Dead Man's Curve" is dangerous because the curve sharpens as it goes, he added."If the turn is steady all the way around, then you are more comfortable with that. If that curve gets sharper as you go, you're more likely to run off the road," Wolfe said."We hope that updating the curve to a different configuration will help reduce the number of accidents," said Gunnery Sgt. Wayne Jones, staff noncommissioned officer-in-charge of the Traffic Branch at the base's Provost Marshal's Office.However, most accidents along "Dead Man's Curve" are due to speeding, Jones said.On Aug. 6, a 5-ton military truck crashed into the guardrails on "Dead Man's Curve." Lance Cpl. Danny J. Barrera and Lance Cpl. Jeremy D. Shafer, both of 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, were injured in the crash.Maj. Daniel Longwell, executive officer for 1st CEB, emphasized the road is inherently unsafe.The curve is especially dangerous going southbound downhill."Most of the accidents that happen out there are going in the southbound direction because that's downhill," Wolfe said. "Just when you need to slow down to 35 mph, you are accelerating because that's your natural reaction to going downhill. However, when going uphill, it's a pretty safe road."Realignment of the road not only will make it safer, it will allow easier access to the ammunition supply point and landfill, said Manuel Alvarez, a civil engineer with the public works office.That section of Basilone Road receives about 7,253 vehicles daily, a July 2000 traffic study reported. In light of traffic, base officials will try to keep the road open during construction, Wolfe said."We'll always provide a temporary route," he said. "Worst case, we'll have a dirt road section where we'll have to put in a bunch of flashing lights to slow people down. If it's closed, it would only be for a matter of hours. It will never be for days."None of the seven accidents this year along the curve resulted in death, but the bend has claimed several people in recent years, including a triathlete who crashed on his bicycle in May 2001 during Ironman California.