GRIDLOCK GURU : Speed limit to stay at 60 a bit longer
Posted on Friday, June 20, 2008
Interstate 540 ’s Promenade Boulevard exit in Rogers looks done, but there’s a wee bit more to do.
The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department says that’s why motorists on I-540 still must drive 60 mph when it sure looks like it ought to be legal to go 70 mph by now.
When the orange signs go, the speed limit should go up, but the Highway Department isn’t so sure. Not yet.
The construction zone for the project that looks done gets The Guru’s full attention.
Question: “How much longer will 60 mph signs remain on I-540 around the new Promenade Boulevard exit ?” writes Fritz Steiger of Bentonville. “Now that the exit is open and construction is complete, as well as the orange barrels being removed, I would think the speed would go back to 70 mph. Most people drive that speed anyway, but I’d like to see the signs come down before increasing my speed. Can you let me know the status ?” Answer: The Promenade Boulevard exit’s ramps opened three weeks ago, but M. J. Lee Construction Co. ’s workers must finish a socalled “punch list” before it’s considered complete, said Highway Department spokesman David Nilles. Workers must verify that all tasks were completed as promised and make any required touch-ups.
The state intends to resume the 70 mph limit when every task is done, Nilles said. That should be a month away.
Q: “The 60 mph construction zone on I-540 for the Pinnacle Hills shopping exit still exists, yet there is absolutely no construction or orange barrels within the zone,” writes Jeff Hayes of Fayetteville. “Instances like this frustrate and undermine drivers’ confidence and willingness to believe and obey legitimate construction zone speed limits. I’m surprised the appropriate person to authorize removal of the signs doesn’t recognize the impact of delaying removal.” A: Forget that first part. The Guru already took care of that. It’s the second part of the Hayes e-mail that intrigues him: What’s bad about a construction zone that overstays its welcome ?
The Federal Highway Administration’s Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices suggests five principles to guide state highway departments about placing signs, including those in construction areas.
The fourth principle says an effective traffic-control device is one that commands respect from road users. Jim Gattis, a University of Arkansas at Fayetteville traffic engineer, said that means people must believe it’s logical.
“If people don’t see a need for a sign, they are going to be more likely to ignore it,” Gattis said. “You see cities put up very low speed limits on through streets and places where they do construction work during the day, and the sign will say ‘lane closed ahead’ and they don’t take down the sign at night.
“ It’s the equivalent of crying wolf.” David Bushey, the Highway Department’s resident engineer on the Promenade exit project, said there’s no fake wolf at the I-540 exit.
“We definitely try to remove traffic-control devices in a timely manner,” Bushey said. Robert J. Smith, aka The Guru, writes on traffic issues in Northwest Arkansas each Friday. He can be reached at gridlockguru @arkansasonline. com or www. nwanews. com / gridlockguru.
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