Posted on 07/20/2011 7:47:43 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
WOODSTOCK -- The last few days have been busy for Shenandoah County emergency personnel on Interstate 81.
Or, as some people may feel, it's been like old times.
Four notable crashes in a 10-mile stretch since Thursday afternoon -- there were two that day, one on Friday and a tractor-trailer overturned Tuesday morning -- may have been the most in such a short period of time since the Virginia Department of Transportation raised the posted speed limit throughout most of the jurisdiction to 70 mph last the fall. Official crash data, though, is not yet available for the past few months, although for all of 2010, there were 29 fewer crashes in the county than a year earlier, according to the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.
The DMV does not track road-specific crash data.
However, speed is not necessarily always the culprit. On Friday and Tuesday, for example, it appeared to be driver fatigue, said Sgt. F.L. "Les" Tyler, a state police spokesman. Felton L. Joseph, 59, of Pearland, Texas, was charged with reckless driving on Tuesday after overturning his tractor-trailer hauling tea on the right shoulder at southbound mile marker 284. There were no injuries.
Based on what local officials have observed, after roughly nine months with the new speed limit, nobody appears to have found a reason yet to change their original impression on 70 mph.
"I don't think there is any good evidence that the interstate is more dangerous now than it was before or even that actual speeds have increased at all," said Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Woodstock, who favored the move. "VDOT made the determination about which areas could safely support the speed limit increase, and I think we should wait and see additional data from them before we jump to any conclusions."
Shenandoah County Fire Chief Gary Yew said he has always thought the increase was a mistake. He is concerned about public safety, particularly in peak travel times, such as the current summer vacation period.
"The more serious crashes over the years, they certainly have been attributed to speed," Yew said. "I can't help but think it compounds our problems."
VDOT spokeswoman Sandy Myers said her agency is waiting to collect data for a three-year period before reviewing the effectiveness of the speed limit change. She echoes Gilbert in stating that it's too early to make any conclusions.
The data, when available, may not matter for some people. William Pence, president of Appalachian Freight Carriers in Edinburg, said 65 mph is fast enough for truckers, so the hike to 70 mph did not sit well with him. Drivers in his company, though, are directed to set their speed at 67 mph, which conserves fuel.
"And that's fast enough for trucks," Pence said.
He said too many crashes involve truck drivers speeding and following too closely, and that was before they were granted the opportunity to travel faster.
"Any rear-end collision involving our drivers," Pence said, "they're outta here."
The Board of Supervisors passed a resolution opposing the increase last year. District 1 representative Dick Neese said his opinion hasn't changed and his concern for I-81 is so great that whenever he must make a Harrisonburg-to-Strasburg trip, he takes U.S. 11.
"I got stopped in [a crash backup] one time," Neese said. "I said there's no way I'm going to let this happen again."
1) Make sure your reaction times are at LEAST as fast as those of a three-toed sloth after a month-long Seconal binge. If they are not, then please do not operate any motor vehicle of any kind on any public roads.
2) Make sure your attention span is at LEAST as long as that of a schizophrenic spider monkey with ADHD. If it is not, then please do not operate any motor vehicle of any kind on any public roads.
3) Make sure your car control abilities are at LEAST on par with those of a one-armed, blind paraplegic who is high on mescaline as he pilots a 1962 Pontiac Catalina with bald tires, worn brakes, a blown power steering pump and only one (misaligned) headlight through a down-hill, off-camber, declining radius curve at midnight during a snow storm, on black ice. If they are not, then please do not operate any motor vehicle of any kind on any public roads.
It is my opinion that if people followed these three simple suggestions, we would see major reductions in both the number and severity of automobile accidents on nation's highways.
;-)
Lower the speed limit to 5mph. Think of all the lives that would save, Fire Chief.
70 MPH isn’t a bad idea; texting/sexting/playing with iPod/looking at porn flicks on a portable DVD player while driving at 70 MPH ARE bad ideas and it seems to be what is causing accidents nowadays.
Ought to have a device installed whereby a hand guardrail springs out and slaps the driver whole car upside the head body every time the front wheels waiver erratically.
Pretty good posts on this thread so far! Usually we get a few self-appointed speed limit monitors to chime in. Guess they are all too busy planting themselves in the left lane at a clean 65 to post today.
Utah has 80 mph on a couple stretches of I-15.
80 mph would be better
We traveled that very stretch of I-81 for the first time in the past four days...did mostly 80MPH very smoothly and safely.
Traffic generally travels at 70+ on interstates. Just because it is officially mandated means nothing. Most state police, especially in PA will tell you they won’t waste time with a ticket until you are over 73.
I am usually a 75-80 MPH guy on highways but was forced to drive 60-65 last week because I was towing a 3000lb pop up with a 35 year old station wagon in 90 degree heat. Even the rusted out Sanford & Sons looking trucks were blowing by me. When we got home my wife finally asked why I had bothered to use the Radar Detector. I said it was just habit.
When I was stationed at Ft. Riley, KS back in the early 90’s, the Kansas Troopers were pretty lax on enforcing speeds on I-70, at least on the long, straight, flat shot between Lawrence and Manhattan. As long as you weren’t swerving or tailgating and keeping it under triple digits, they seemed to be pretty lenient.
Cool, I won't have to worry about tickets for another thirty years.
I encountered a "Keeper of the Speed" yesterday. She was hugging the left lane at 56mph and nudging her speed in order to frustrate anyone trying to go around her. I just used the breakdown lane (HOV) to pass her. Wow, was she indignant!
She affirmed her KOTP status by speeding up and tailgating me for the next three miles. I guess that showed me!
Oops - KOTP = KOTS
ahh yes... I call them the “Safe” drivers, going 10 to 15 mph below the speed limit in the left lane...they are “safe” drivers because they never get into an accident, but mysteriously, accidents happen all around them...
I call them the “not in front of me” people...they will slow down when there are vehicles next to them, and speed up if there is an opening for you to get around them...my suv with large v-8 engine usually blows them away before their little econoboxes even get started
I hate those drivers with a passion !
I remembered encountering one in Ohio in 1986. It took ten miles to get around the LLB (Left Lane Bandit) and when I got around him, he was flashing his lights and you could see arms flailing. This was during the hated 55 mph days and at that time, I always did 70 mph on the open road.
Yeah, I got a Reckless for doing 80 on a 65. 80 mph is reckless in VA no matter what the spped limit or road conditions. Reckless is also a misdemeanor than can result in jail time. I had to hire a lawyer, take a day off of work, drive to Fredricksburg, take initiative to take a safe driver class, and incur the stress of possibly losing my job (requires a security clearance) over speeding just so the judge could reduce the charge to simple speeding at 79 mph. What a waste of time, money, and energy that was.
There is a huge Wal-Mart distribution center right by an interchange between Harrisonburg and Stanton with its own railyard.
There was talk that some of the truck traffic would diminish once the raillink was completed. I haven't noticed it happening. Have you?
An increase of 5 mph in the official limit is hardly going to make the difference imagined by the hand-wringers despite the saturation enforcement by various police agencies.
The more relevant question rarely asked in this type of article is: with our roads in a constant state of disrepair despite exorbitant fuel taxes pi**ed up the wall by spendthrift vote buyers and union contracts, why are we obsessed with some artifice posted on a sign?
Amen
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.