Why did you stop me? Why did you pull me over? What did I do?
Posted on 03/20/2021 4:57:39 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
GREENFIELD — Orange and white traffic barrels, detour signs and construction equipment stretch as far as the eye can see through the heart of Greenfield, indicating a major construction project is underway.
Road improvement work along State Road 9 on the south side of Greenfield officially started this week, and despite numerous warnings to drivers about the road closure, the work is creating chaos as many drivers are disregarding the construction signs and driving through the closure area.
Greenfield Police Department officers stopped nearly 50 drivers who disregarded construction warnings and went around “road closed” signs and barricades on Tuesday, March 9. An additional 47 drivers were pulled over Wednesday, March 10, for the same type of violations.
The blatant disregard for the construction warning and “road closed” signs is creating safety issues for construction crews as well as the community, police say.
“The detours are clearly marked,” said Capt. Chuck McMichael, public information officer for GPD. “The only time you should be in the closed-off area is to visit a business within the closure or going to and from a home in the closure.”
Mallory Duncan, communications director for the Indiana Department of Transportation, worked with local officials to try and warn people about the full-closure construction. She and McMichael produced a video that was posted last week on the GPD Facebook page explaining the restrictions. But people are having a hard time adjusting.
“With any kind of full closure, there is no through traffic, but there is access for homeowners and the businesses, so if you’re just driving through, that road is not for you right now,” Duncan said.
While there is no through traffic, there are ways to get around the construction zone if people will follow the official detours or use side streets.
(Excerpt) Read more at greenfieldreporter.com ...
Not just SPEEDING in a work zone, but ignoring the signs to STAY OUT OF the work zone.
PING!
Too much “crying wolf” by construction contractors who leave their signage up during multi-hour lunch breaks, over night, etc.
Some state DOTs encourage “closing” or lane limiting far more highway than absolutely necessary under the misguided theory that changing patterns is more hazardous than a single long term pattern.
Just my $0.02
The closure of that road has been a total mess. At this point, I just pretty much avoid the whole thing, with the exception of an occasional necessary visit to some store on the north end of town.
INDIANA. Greenfield INDIANA.
Please put the state somewhere when it isn’t included in the story.
It took a bit to figure it out, as even the paper’s page didn’t identify its location.
LOL, then I notice that the ONE paragraph I skipped has the state in it. Some days....
+100
Driving through the mountains a couple years ago they were re paving several miles of road. The reduced limit was for 40 miles, and they were doing one lane of three, 30 miles in. The reduced limit was still in effect even after the work crew was well behind.
No wonder some folks ignore the signs.
The speed limit sign is violated by about 99.8% of people every day. Then when a cop pulls them over for doing 70 in a 55 zone or 55 in a 25 mph school zone, the people lose their minds. I was coming home today on a 4-lane high way, coming from the hospital where my dear wife just came out of ICU after five days, and while driving along at 65 mph in a 65 mph zone (YES I was following the speed limit!!!) a guy went blowing by me doing 90 if he was doing anything. He was absolutely flying. He was gone gone gone, boom and gone!!! I thought maybe it was a low flying jet, but no it was some guy in an SUV made by Cadillac!!
As you drive through a construction zone and deal with the hassle of construction-related traffic delays, keep in mind that four things generally drive all work zone MPT layouts (roughly in this order of priority):
1. Safety for workers.
2. Safety for motorists (they are only secondary to workers because unlike workers, they are protected inside their vehicles).
3. The cost and efficiency of setting up the work zone (you don't want contractors to have their workers spend half of a typical shift setting up and breaking down a work zone every day or night).
4. Maintaining a roadway cross-section through a construction zone that's as similar as possible to the normal operating condition. In other words, if the road has three 12-foot lanes per direction under normal conditions, then have three 12-foot lanes during the construction phase if possible. If this is not feasible, then start implementing lane modifications/closures as needed to maintain as much capacity as possible based on the duration of the construction -- i.e., three 11-foot lanes for long-term construction, two 12-foot lanes and a closed lane for short-term construction, re-alignment of the travel lanes to the opposing direction of traffic for long-term closures, etc.
I kinda agree with you. The first words should have been “Greenfield, Indiana” instead of just “Greenfield.”
It’s a profit center. They put up signs but do NOT actually barricade the road. Then they sit back and collect the fines. Been there.
Very helpful. Thank you.
“...violated by about 99.8% of people...”
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So...you art part of the .02%?
One reason people ignore the signs is that you can drive 10-15 miles in a “construction zone” without seeing a single worker.
you can always tell a democrat in work zone merge zones... they are the ones who take cuts in the merging lane aaalllllllll the way up as far as they can go befor they just jam themselves into the thru lane...
And those rinos out there who want to pipe up and say how that helps the traffic flow, all I have to say is, if you are in the merging lane, and you pass people who have already merged, you might be a Moron!!
Most times, all ar lucky I dont have a rochet launcher on the front of my truck!! just sayin...
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