HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — A Henrico County woman is speaking out after a man was killed in a crash near her home — at an intersection where she says many crashes have taken place over the years.
According to the Henrico County Division of Police, officers responded to a report of a crash involving a tractor-trailer and a GMC Envoy SUV near the intersection of New Market Road and Doran Road in the Varina area at around 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 16.
The driver of the SUV, 60-year-old Brian Edward Suggs of Henrico, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the tractor-trailer had minor injuries and is expected to be okay.
Victoria Parmenter, who’s lived on Doran Road for 15 years, said she’s witnessed several crashes like this one in the area over the years.
“We’ve seen so many accidents,” said Parmenter. “Your heart drops when you see somebody or know that somebody’s been hurt because of what’s going on. Living here, we’ve heard it and seen it a lot.”
Parmenter said New Market Road is a major thoroughfare for drivers traveling between Richmond and the Varina area — and with more development, traffic is becoming a nightmare for residents.
“The traffic is literally just going to increase, and so they should really be doing something now so that it doesn’t continue to be a danger for people,” Parmenter said.
The Virginia Department of Transportation said a speed study was conducted on New Market Road in March 2023, resulting in the speed limit being reduced from 55 miles per hour to 45 miles per hour. A blinking stop sign was also installed near the intersection.
Although Parmenter is seeing slow progress with these improvements, she said it’s simply not enough.
“We’re hoping that there’d be a bigger change. Either a roundabout or a stop light,” she added.
Henrico Police’s crash team is still investigating and has not yet revealed the cause of the crash.
