More needs to be done to make the junction of Route 136 and Brownlee Road in Somerset safer, according to local residents who call it one of the most dangerous intersections in Washington County.

At least one local politician is pushing for a "multi, multi-million dollar" improvement project at the intersection, where five employees and residents from a Bentleyville personal care home were killed April 24 in a crash.

Although the crash, which was officially ruled an accident last week by county Coroner S. Timothy Warco, wasn't blamed on limited site distance, that's the factor that has been cited for most of the accidents at the intersection.

The intersection has been the site of 48 reportable traffic accidents in the 11 years leading up to April 24, according to the state Department of Transportation. The figure does not include the accident on that date.

And more have occurred since then, said Chuck Augustein, whose family operates a home heating oil company at the intersection.

On the morning of April 24, a block building owned by his company was demolished when a tractor-trailer traveling east on Route 136 struck a 2002 Chevrolet van carrying the driver and 10 passengers from the personal care home to the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium.

The impact shoved the van into the block building. It took five hours for rescue crews to extract the driver, Sheryl Maiolini, 53; personal care home staffer Mary E. Watkins, 43; and residents John Maise, 61; Richard Paquet, 43; and Julia Hugus, 41.

Six other occupants of the van and the truck driver were injured.

State police said the accident was the result of driver error, citing witnesses who said Ms. Maiolini stopped at the intersection, pulled onto Route 136 and stopped again in the path of the truck.

Ms. Maiolini, like many other motorists, was using Brownlee Road as a shortcut to avoid traffic in the Washington area. Motorists traveling Interstate 70 often exit at Dunningsville, then travel Brownlee Road and Route 519 to enter Interstate 79 near Canonsburg.

Another van also carrying residents from the personal care home was traveling ahead of Ms. Maiolini's vehicle and had arrived at the zoo before staff members learned what had happened.

Mr. Augustein, whose block building has been rebuilt, blames most of the accidents on what he calls "55-itis" -- vehicles that exit Interstate 70 at Dunningsville, travel the short distance onto Brownlee Road and maintain interstate highway speeds without slowing down or sometimes even stopping at the intersection.

Mr. Augustein said he has seen vehicles traveling north on Brownlee Road become airborne and sail through the intersection without stopping.

At least once a week an accident or fender bender occurs at the site, he said.

"They need to get rid of that exit to stop this traffic," said Mr. Augustein, who acknowledged that pushing for the closing of the Dunningsville exit would likely be fruitless.

Nonetheless, more meaningful improvements are needed to make the intersection safer, he said.

Since April, some low-cost improvements have been made at the junction, said PennDOT District 12 traffic engineer Rachel Duda. Rumble strips have been installed on both sides of Brownlee Road, larger stop signs have been erected, pavement markings have been placed on Route 136 warning of an upcoming intersection, and several large trees have been removed from a nearby hillside.

"It's a shame it took five people dying to do it," Mr. Augustein said of the upgrades.

State Sen. J. Barry Stout, D-Bentleyville, said he wants to see many more changes, including possibly regrading of the steep hills that bottom out on either side of Brownlee Road.

Mr. Stout, who is chairman of the state Senate Transportation Committee and serves on the Appropriations Committee, said he recently secured a $25,000 state Department of Community and Economic Development grant to install flashing lights and signs to warn of the steep grade along Route 136.

He hopes to identify funding for a larger project to reconfigure the intersection, acquire property and lower the grade of at least one hillside.

"These are going to be multi, multi-million dollar improvements," he said. "It's a priority, but it takes time to get engineering done. It's inadequate, but I can't just change the topography of southwestern Pennsylvania."

This summer, Mr. Stout took PennDOT officials, including Secretary Allen D. Biehler, on a tour of the Brownlee Road/Route 136 intersection and the intersection of Brownlee and Route 519, also the site of accidents.

Along with the planned improvements for the Brownlee/Route 136 junction, he said, the department agreed to explore improvements for the Brownlee/Route 519 intersection.

State police had to provide security for the officials to prevent them from being struck by vehicles at the Route 519 site, Mr. Stout said.

It's the long-range planning that irks some residents, including Nancy Close, who has lived in the area for 25 years.

"I think that spending millions takes way too long and could cost more lives," Ms. Close said.

Mr. Augustein said major improvements have been discussed for decades with no action. He said his family was approached many years ago about selling their single-acre property to make room for a larger intersection. They were willing to do so, he said, but funding has fallen through every time.

"I don't see them being able to fix the intersection without it affecting me," he said.

Mr. Augustein said most of his friends travel an extra mile or so daily to use the larger intersection of Route 519 and Route 136 for safety reasons.

Trucks frequently use Route 136 because it's the fastest route to and from Washington and Monongahela.

But Ms. Close said motorists who are not from the area probably don't expect to encounter large trucks as they speed across the Route 136 intersection, nestled in a rural valley.

Some local residents said they "close their eyes and punch the gas" as they pull into the intersection for fear they will be struck by a truck they didn't see.

Sight distance on the east side of Route 136 is limited and has been the most prevalent factor in most reported accidents.

A recent afternoon visit to the site showed cars routinely pulling into the path of tractor-trailers, even in spots where sight distance was sufficient.

Ms. Close said the tragedy in April drew attention to poor conditions at the site and she hopes it has made motorists more aware of the danger.

"I think just the publicity is enough to get people to slow down," she said.