Commuters who travel through the Santa Fe Avenue intersection off of Hatch Road may find something other than the railway to slow their trip within the next couple months.

Stanislaus County is preparing to make improvements to the intersection in an attempt to ease traffic flow for the busy intersection, as well as install new medians.

“That road is pretty rough,” said County Survey and Right-of-Way Manager Brian Borum. “We are hopeful that this will help with circulation of the traffic and create greater public safety.”

The project has been of interest to Stanislaus County since 2011, and is estimated to cost as much as $3 million. The county hopes to generate 32.6 jobs in its Roads to Success Plan as part of the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program cycle. The intersection of Hatch Road and Santa Fe Avenue qualified for the funding.

These improvements include widening Hatch Road by adding a right turn lane from eastbound Hatch Road to southbound Santa Fe. The turning radius will also be increased on the northbound lane of Santa Fe Avenue to the eastbound Hatch Road, according to Borum.

In addition to wider lanes, the project will also incorporate traffic signals, upgrades to the existing RR crossing, and signals to coordinate the traffic signal with the RR signals.

These improvements were brought to the Turlock Irrigation District Board of Directors' attention at Tuesday's meeting, as the project will affect a portion of the Ceres Main Canal’s 90-foot wide right of way.