On Friday afternoon, a car driven by a 49 year-old Timaru man crashed into a concrete power pole while the driver was attempting to turn off Glen St into Athol Place.
The power pole was sheared off at its base and was only prevented from crushing the car by a strainer wire from another power pole.
Sergeant Mylen Hamilton, of Timaru Police, said the crash resulted in live wires dangling on the ground close to the driver's door, posing an "extreme danger" to the driver, who was lucky not to have been electrocuted.
Excessive speed was the likely cause of the crash and police were considering charges against the driver, he said.
Concerns were raised about safety at the intersection in July 2008, only a week after two traffic islands and a second Give Way sign were placed there.
Two motorists contacted The Courier to express concerns the islands were difficult to negotiate and steered cars to within a few metres of the power pole.
Statistics from the New Zealand Transport Agency reveal there were no reported crashes at the intersection in the five-year period before the layout was changed.
However, including Friday's incident, there have been three crashes in the 16 months since the redesign.
Timaru District Council land transport manager Andrew Dixon said he would review the cause of the recent crashes to see whether the intersection layout had been a factor.
Mr Dixon said it was normal practice for his team to study crash reports, and all intersection improvements were reviewed in this light.
However, speed was often the issue, he said.
"It doesn't matter what controls you put into intersections - if people drive too fast, they are not going to take the intersection very well."
South Canterbury road safety co-ordinator Daniel Naude said the intersection had been designed to reduce speed and motorists simply had to adjust.
"If you choose to ignore local traffic conditions, you will get into trouble. It's not about the layout, it's the fact that people aren't adjusting their driving."