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Economy, war, B Street
With the start of the new year, it is time to ponder questions which impact everyone.
Will the economy ever recover? Will we go to war with Iraq? Will we ever see moisture again?
Sure, those are important questions, but those won't be addressed here today. Instead, we are going to examine an issue which really affects our everyday lives: traffic.
You can't go anywhere without stopping at a stop sign, passing through a busy intersection or encountering at least three road construction projects. On a recent trip to North Platte (and anyone who has driven U.S. Highway 83 north recently knows what I'm talking about), I had the privilege of stopping on the highway for 10 minutes, which gave me time to ponder about the current state of traffic in our area.
Taking those questions directly to the source, Kurt Vosburg with the Nebraska Department of Roads office in McCook willingly and cheerfully (at least he faked it well on the phone) answered today's pressing questions about traffic.
- Why does the traffic signal at West 10th and B Street in McCook change so quickly? In the meantime, I can paint my nails in the time it takes for the lights at Federal Avenue and West Fifth to change.
Personally, I feel bad about stopping on the side street at West 10th and B because the light changes so quickly and I hate stopping all the traffic on B Street.
Meanwhile, the Casey's West is frequently passed because I take a side street to avoid sitting for 10 minutes at the Federal Avenue and B Street red light.
Vosburg said the light at West 10th is all on its lonesome and operates without any regard to any other light on B Street. A car that has been waiting for the light for 0.3 seconds triggers a change in signals and be damned the rest of the lights on B Street.
The lights for Federal Avenue and West Fifth Street are another matter entirely, he said.
"It's a unique situation. Since they are half a block apart, cars get stacked up in the left hand turn lane going either direction on B Street," he said, and can, therefore, block traffic in every possible direction if the lights aren't time correctly.
But the lights are not just timed. In fact, they are watching you; they know you are there, he said. They're just temporarily ignoring you, like some husbands and wives do with years of practice.
According to Vosburg, the light is waiting for just the right moment to turn so it doesn't mess up the "storage" of vehicles in the turning lanes.
As if that weren't enough to think about, remember you have fire trucks and police cars and rescue vehicles regularly entering and leaving the intersection to consider. Plus, there are all those people leaving AmFirst bank with money in their pockets, eager to spend that recently acquired cash.
- Do you have any recommendations on how to prevent people from going straight across Norris Avenue on J Street?
For those unfamiliar with this intersection, the meeting of these two streets should just be converted into an exit ramp, such as on the interstate. One look at the pavement and drivers would see that they are meant to go only one way: turn right. With three-foot wheel ruts curving to the right, motorists should be forced to turn right.
But some drivers like to take it upon themselves to go straight across Norris Avenue, continuing eastbound on J Street. Behind them, cars begin to backup 12 deep, because traffic does not allow for easy passing of Norris Avenue.
A simple sign could prohibit people from going straight and require them to turn right and take a left the next block up.
Now, some people are going to start arguing freedom of speech, freedom to drive whichever direction they want, freedom to carry a weapon and use upon column writers who force you to turn.
Ultimately, you've got Vosburg on your side, since he said you can't force people to turn and not go straight.
- How do you get one of those jobs standing on the highway turning the sign, telling drivers to slow down or stop?
The job as a flagger had always been a dream of mine, that is until I talked to Vosburg and learned the technical name for the position -- and it's rate of pay.
I envisioned hours of standing in the sun, getting a nice tan, chatting with all the nice people waiting to pass the road construction site. He quickly dashed those hopes and desires.
"I wouldn't ever want that job," he said.
He pointed out that flaggers are usually used on asphalt jobs, where they stand on pavement which reached at least 250 degrees. Flaggers get to hear all the complaints from drivers who are stopped at the road construction. And they are the lowest paid employees on a construction project. "You get to do all that for the sum of $7.60 on a federal aid job," he said.
I guess I'll keep my day job here behind my computer.