Putting Out a Fire With Gasoline

Leave it to Hoosiers to solve small perceived problems by creating new ones. Leave it to Hoosiers to, in the same breath, mention the solution to a large problem, but then say that it isn't going to happen. The root of both problems: a certain stretch of Indiana 64. As was reported in today's Princeton Clarion:

A blinking traffic signal at Ind. 64's junction with Ind. 65 will be upgraded to a full red-yellow-green signal in late 2010.

Wonderful, that's just what we need. As if that two lane stretch of road with constant traffic wasn't bad enough, let's add a stoplight so we can really clump all that traffic together! Let's make this run take even longer! The junction of 64 and 65? Owensville junction? I do not see the point. Supposedly, it is a safety issue, but in reality, it's not in any way difficult to enter or exit 65 at that intersection if you have even the most basic driving ability... which may be the reason Hoosiers need a stoplight.

The real problem with 64 is that it is a two lane road with too much traffic. With a high volume of oncoming traffic, passing becomes difficult, and any slow traffic will bottleneck the artery. Surely, if the slight problem of the junction of 64 and 65 is being so readily addressed, then the desperate need for a four lane expansion will be given the same consideration...

Cher Goodwin, spokesman for Indiana Dept. of Transportation's Vincennes district office, said Wednesday the increased traffic at the hazardous intersection warrants the upgrade, but it's unlikely the highway will become a four-lane thoroughfare without a unique funding source.

She said while traffic has increased on the highway, there's no four-lane plans in the near future.

“There's something in the long-range plans 20-35 years out, and as industry changes, that's always something that could be reviewed,” she said.

Perfect. It's all about priorities, eh? Let's not even consider finding a way to solve the real problem. Let's fix a small one that will actually worsen the big one! This makes so much sense. Adding a stoplight compresses all the traffic into a pack. Any slow traffic in the pack will slow everything to a crawl. In desperation to get moving, people will make even more daredevil passes than the ones they already do. So, logically, this project is going to achieve two things:

1. Slow traffic, making your trip take longer
2. Make the stretch of road more dangerous due to larger packs of traffic

My sentiments are echoed... to an extent... by a commenter on the story, D. Parrish:

Now that IDOT has begun the process of applying common sense to this intersection, it begs the question of how long before they undertake restricting the passing zones along Highway 64 between US41 and the Duke Energy power plant. This entire stretch of highway is dangerous and needs to be upgraded appropriately. While widening the road isn't always feasible, modifying the striping to restrict inappropriate driving practices is well within the reach of IDOT. And, to avoid misunderstanding, it's not only the truck drivers that abuse this stretch of road ... more often than not it's the passenger vehicles in a hurry to arrive at their destination in as short a time frame as they can manage. Any change on this stretch of highway is long overdue.

Restricting passing zones? If that happens, all will be clear. This is all just one big scheme to make the dusk evening commute look like the world's longest funeral procession.
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Big Cray: Accept No Substitute