I’ve been reading with interest efforts to streamline the state Department of Transportation. Apparently it may involve an internecine feud between the executive and legislative branches of state government (must be taking a cue from Washington!). Governor Sonny Perdue appears to be trying to wrest control of the DoT from state lawmakers. He wants to replace their 13-member board, that the entire General Assembly elects, with an 11-member board the 
governor would appoint along with the Speaker of the House & the Lt.Governor. Now I’m all for streamlining the DoT. It needs it. Too many disparate agencies are involved in the decision-making process about what gets done which is why not much gets done or it takes so long. But I’m against a board appointed mainly by the governor. Atlanta has enough problems getting anything from a Governor from south Georgia. We haven’t been all that lucky either with a legislature dominated by downstaters. But at least we get to elect lawmakers in both houses every 2 years while the governor gets 4 years (limited to two terms.) But Sonny’s argument is it makes the agency more accountable to the citizens of Georgia because we could go directly to the governor’s office if there was something we didn’t like (like toll lanes). And we could show our disapproval when the election rolled back around. Once. Versus 4 times if control stays where it is. In the state legislature. Where we have more more control.
traffic
I stand corrected! I got a note about my traffic light blog this week
from Chance Baxley here at my website. Chance and his co-workers
work with traffic lights and told me I was wrong about pressure plates.
Nope. No Pressure.
Electricity! There are wires laid into those cuts
you see in the pavement and they create what’s called an “inductance field.”
Chance tells me when a vehicle crosses over those wires, or “loops” as
they’re known, they detect the car’s metal and the cycle kicks in. He says
some loops are looped into coordinated systems that manage the flow of vehicles.
So that’s one reason why sometimes I don’t think the light “sees” my car.
It’s looking at the big picture. Although he did admit smaller cars could
be harder to detect because they have less metal in them. But there’s no
scientific proof of that. It still doesn’t change my basic premise. That
is you still have to pull up all the way to the line. Otherwise the system
may not detect your vehicle, big or small. And all of us behind you have
to pay for it. And my “zig-zagging” theory is still workable because I’m
making sure the loops detect me being, well, loopy! So thanks for the correction.
When it comes to telling you about traffic I don’t want to take any chances.
Atlanta’s a tough town to drive in. That’s why it’s important for all of
us to do our best. But I’ve noticed something very disturbing lately I
wanted to share. Did I miss something in Driver’s Ed (or maybe we need
Driver’s Ed)? Why do many of us NOT pull up all the way to the line at
the light? I see cars, trucks, etc., every day pullin’ up short. It drives
me crazy! Sometimes there’s enough room to pull another car in front.
Like, say, my car! What some of us fail to understand is if we don’t pull
up it won’t activate the traffic light timer system, especially in left
turn lanes. Then you have to wait for it to cycle through. There are pressure
plates at those lights and if you don’t pull up all the way they don’t work
and we get stuck longer at the light. CUT IT OUT! Pull up. The only reason
I can come up with why we don’t “finish the job” is fear. Many times we
see people turning left from the cross street “cut the corner” of the left
lane or turn lane. All I can say is if you’re that scared…then take the
bus. Otherwise, “man up.” You’re driving in Atlanta and we need all the
breaks we can get, not the brakes making you stop 10 feet short of the light!
Once again we’re being told to watch for Halloween traffic. It’s gonna’ get SSSCCCAAARRRYYY!!! But, once again, we’re being told mainly by people who don’t have a clue about what’s going on. Sure, traffic’s gonna’ be tough today. But guess what? If it wasn’t that’sthe exception to the rule! Many of these 4-wheel doom-sayers are just regurgitating stories written months or years ago, then trotted out every Halloween so they won’t have to do as much work. I guarantee you traffic will not be as bad as last Friday evening when it rained. That was a disaster. The only real difference this evening will be on neighborhood streets where the little kids will be running around in their costumes, many wearing masks with limited visibility. That’s where you have to be careful. But “Madman’ you say! What about early this afternoon? Everyone’s gonna’ try to get a jump on gettin’ home to get ready?!? Once again I’m not worried. Did you see the back-up yesterday afternoon, before three, after a truck wreck took out a right lane on 85 northbound near Shallowford? Past North Druid Hills. Now that’s ssscccaaarrryyy! So, take it from me, when you hear these prognosticators of rolling doom tell you it’s gonna’ be bad just keep in mind they probably work from home. Or ride MARTA. They’re not a true rush hour warrior like you and me.
Once again we’re seeing more ramp meters going on-line around Atlanta. Ramp meters are those timed traffic lights on interstate on-ramps. In casual conversation I’ve heard many people, friends and family included, criticise the ramp lights. And ya’ know, up until earlier this year I would have been right with them. Then I found out something. They really work!
Yep. A relatively inexpensive method that actually does what it’s supposed to! I know it doesn’t seem like it. Initially. But local traffic management people have seen very good results.In some cases double digit improvements in traffic flow! The key has been management. The meters pace traffic through the use of sensors in the road and cameras. They’ll time you down the ramp so when you get there you’ll have some space to merge, rather than slowing or speeding up creating hazardous driving conditions. They adjust according to the flow, including the amount of traffic on the ramp. People at the Traffic Management Center are also watching the cameras and can override the system or can even shut it down manually if they have to when things just get too heavy. The only thing about em’ that can be frustrating is, under Georgia law, if you run a ramp light it’s the same as running a red light and you can get a ticket. So, give em’ a chance.
In light of the DOT claiming poverty on road improvement projects etc., it’s one fairly inexpensive idea that goes along with my traffic mantra of: “Manage What You Got!”
While your waiting in line for gas make use of your time to ponder the answers to the questions about making things better for your commute. Improvements that could improve your gas mileage. The hot topic at the DoT is “HOT” lanes. “HOT” stands fo High Occupancy Toll” lanes. The difference between HOT and HOV is you can pay extra to drive by yourself legally in a HOT lane. A kind of express lane. The problem is the idea has problems yet to be worked out. How much will it cost per day? Per week? Per month? If there’s a guarantee of “no traffic” what happens if an accident or stall blocks the HOT lane? Will there be a refund? What about barriers to keep non-complying vehicles out? And, if so, what kind of barriers? Rubber? Concrete? Your good looks? All legitimate questions that need legitimate answers so you don’t get hot under the collar!
I read a story in the AJC that Forbes magazine ranks Atlanta’s commute as now the worst in the nation. The news should not be too surprising in light of what I told you late last year when we got word from federal transportation people that Atlanta was the “poster child” for bad traffic in the nation. Our area is so bad, according to Forbes.com, we’ve qualified to share in over a billion dollars of federal money to find ways to improve our congestion. I’m encouraged to see that many of the ideas follow my mantra, “manage what you got.”
What I’m having a hard time managing is this drive towards making drivers pay to drive the roads, we already paid for, during peak driving times. I understand why planners might like this idea. With the DoT dollar crunch it makes dollars and sense, to them, to plow the money back into the system to keep the infrastructure from crumbling. But to me it’s like being taxed twice for the same thing.
Another idea I really like is allowing single occupant vehicles to use the HoV lane. Yeah, they would pay. But that’s different. That’s a privilege on top of a privilege you’ve already paid for. Personally, I like the idea of express lanes. HoV lanes really are ineffective. Go ahead and make em’ express lanes and let people go! Then vigorously enforce traffic by making sure slower moving vehicles are kept out of the way.
One more thing. We need ALL local government jurisdictions thinking one way on this. Too many cooks spoil the broth. And we’re already stewing in our own juices now in America’s poster child for bad traffic.
