Douglas County commissioners are looking to stretch out a curve southeast of Clinton Lake in an effort to curb the number of accidents on the rural road.

Banning’s Corner — the 90-degree-angle curve on Douglas County Road 458, just below the Clinton Lake dam — would be replaced with a banked, half-mile-long curve as early as next year, under a plan being reviewed by commissioners.

The estimated $450,000 project would be designed to improve safety by eliminating the corner’s trouble spot: a sharp curve with a posted speed limit of 15 mph, down from 55 mph.

It’s a location where 26 accidents have occurred since 1997.

“It’s something we have to take care of pretty quick,” Commissioner Jere McElhaney said.

Commissioners are looking to add the project to their proposed capital improvements plan, which outlines financing for major construction projects envisioned during the next eight years. Commissioners intend to adopt the plan Monday.

The new curve would resemble one northwest of Lawrence connecting the Farmers Turnpike with County Road 1029. The 1029 curve — completed in July as part of a $2 million safety overhaul for the road leading to Lecompton — has been welcomed by the driving public, said Keith Browning, the county’s engineer and director of public works.

He expects the latest project to be no different.

County Road 458 runs north and turns east at the curve, which is south of Eagle Bend Golf Course and a field used for flying model airplanes. The road is a popular route for people heading to and from Lone Star Lake.

Of the 10 accidents at the corner since 2000, eight involved vehicles that “didn’t make the turn,” Browning said, and three caused injuries. All shared a common cause.

“It’s speed,” Browning said. “You don’t expect a 15-mile-an-hour curve on a road like that.”

The new curve would be designed to allow traffic to travel safely at 55 mph or 60 mph, Browning said. The consistent speeds and addition of paved shoulders would provide safety for bicyclists making their way to and from Lone Star Lake, he said.

The county has had plans drawn up for the work since 1983 but no money to carry them through.

Now, with development expected to increase east of the dam, officials are ready to move. Browning said the project could be built next year or in 2006.

“It’s not a matter of if,” said Charles Jones, commission chairman. “It’s a matter of when.”