BILLINGS— A January traffic study on the intersection of South 36th Street West and Monad Road in Billings revealed problems that are qualifying it for more traffic controls.
The finding that 75% of traffic on Monad Road is speeding over the 35 miles per hour speed limit has qualified the intersection for the city’s “traffic calming program”.
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According to City Engineer Mac Fogelsong, the city has not determined a specific solution, but there are ideas in the works, such as a mini roundabout at the intersection and curb extenders on Monad.
He said Wednesday afternoon that his team has decided against making the intersection a four-way stop because the traffic on Monad is heavier.
“Over time, folks are going to tend to run the stop signs on Monad, and they're probably doing that at higher speeds. So those accidents might be more severe than without a four-way stop,” he said.
Curb extenders on Monad Road could take a few months, but a solution involving significant spending by the city, such as a mini roundabout, could take a year or more, according to Fogelsong. Funding approval and other projects taking priority could push that waiting time longer.
“I would say it's probably in the top third of the projects or top quarter of the projects,” said Fogelsong.
He added that the city has studied more than 100 traffic areas in Billings over the past year, but some require more attention than others.
“I would say the majority of them, usually when someone sees something, there's something that needs to be changed or altered,” said Fogelsong.
“We pretty much take almost every phone call serious,” he added.
The city recently added larger stop signs and signs saying, “cross traffic does not stop” to the South 36th Street West and Monad Road intersection after residents in nearby neighborhoods expressed concern.
Some of those residents are hoping to see improvements that will alert drivers to the intersection, such as a light.
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“I would love flashing lights so that people slow down so that they know there's an intersection there,” said nearby resident Carol Weisz.
“They've got to make this intersection visible that it should be a four-way stop,” added Weisz’s neighbor, Jay Ettleman.
The neighbors said crashes at the intersection have been frequent, and the Billings Police Department confirmed nine crashes in 2025.
“It's been on their attention list. We've had accidents quite frequent for years,” said Ettleman, who said he has alerted the city about the dangers of this intersection for a long time.
“I appreciate the city looking into it because it is a concern for our neighborhood,” said Weisz.
“It's a big city, and they have a lot of intersections to look at. But this is one I think they need to check into,” she added.
