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After decades of effort, Madison may soon join a $35 million deal with the state and others to improve dangerous highway crossings on the city’s Southeast Side.

The agreement with the state Department of Transportation, Dane County, the town of Cottage Grove and the Ho-Chunk Nation would create a new diamond interchange with an overpass for County Highway AB at Highway 12-18. The plan is aimed at reducing accidents at two of the most dangerous intersections in the city, as well as improving access to Yahara Hills golf course, Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison and other places.

Currently, the intersection of Millpond Road and Highway 12-18 — with 55 accidents, 17 injuries and one fatality between 2014 and 2018 — is the second-most dangerous in the city, and the intersection of AB and Highway 12-18 — with 35 accidents, 19 injuries and one fatality in that span — is the third-most dangerous.

“The Millpond Road and County AB intersections are some of the most dangerous within the city and the state,” city transportation director Thomas Lynch said. “This condition has existed for almost 30 years. The city has frequently asked WisDOT to address the high safety concerns that exist at these intersections.”