Whose shoulder is it? Plus, pavement and resolutions
Posted on January 4th, 2009 – 10:17 PMBy Roadguy
Here’s my column from the Sunday paper. If you’ve already read it elsewhere, please skip on down to the comments below. Thanks.
DEFINE ‘AUTHORIZED’
When alert reader Glen is driving on the freeway, he keeps an eye on the bus-only shoulders, and he wonders:
What vehicles are allowed to use those special “authorized vehicle” lanes, namely shoulders? It started with [Metro Transit] buses and the like, then I saw Metro Mobility mini-buses, and I’ve seen commercial coaches and school buses do it as well.
Roadguy first went to the state statutes for this one (169.306, to be exact). The law says that transit and Metro Mobility buses may use authorized shoulders, and that such shoulders also can allow buses with a seating capacity of 40 or more “operated by a motor carrier of passengers” in Minnesota. Sorry, Glen: this means that you can’t just run out, buy a bus and give the shoulders a try.
Everyday school buses aren’t allowed, according to the folks at the Minnesota Department of Transportation, so any yellow buses that Glen saw were probably operating as charters.
THE DIRT ON ROAD SURFACES
Alert reader Bill has been checking out the varying shades of gray on Hwy. 12 in the western suburbs, and he has a question:
I noticed there are some parts that are blacktop, some concrete. What determines which type of surface is used?
Kent Barnard, a MnDOT spokesman, said the main factor is the condition of the soil underneath the roadbed. Asphalt is more flexible, so it’s better for areas where soils are less stable.
Concrete is the overall preferred paving material because it’s generally longer-lasting, Barnard said, though when it ages, it often gets smoothed out with a layer of asphalt on top.
RESOLUTIONS REVISITED
Now that it’s 2009, Roadguy took a look back at his transportation resolutions from a year ago, and he didn’t do too badly:
• I have more or less eliminated talking on the cell phone while driving unless I’m on a rural interstate. I don’t even keep a headset in the car anymore. My work and personal life appear to have survived.
• My respect for yellow lights has grown considerably, and I now hit the brake pedal more than the gas pedal.
• I managed to ride my bike to work (twice).
• I finally purchased a parking meter card, though the card is heading toward obsolescence as Minneapolis’ meters are replaced.
If you have some transportation resolutions — for yourself, not for the inferior drivers all around you — send ‘em to Roadguy.
One response to "Whose shoulder is it? Plus, pavement and resolutions"
My resolution is to stop getting mad at ignorance on the road because:
1) People know what they did wrong and they simply don’t care.
2) People have no idea what they did wrong and honking/giving them the staredown will make them more confused.
3) Even if I could pull over and talk to everyone about what happened and even give them the traffic code they violated, it likely won’t go as planned.
It’s hard, though, because people don’t realize their actions on the road affect everyone else. People die every day because someone did something selfish which they thought wouldn’t harm anyone else.
I haven’t thought of anything I could do when people get mad at me for doing something correctly, though (e.g. merging at the merge point instead of 5 miles early, not turing right on red when a sign says not to, etc).
Unfortunately, I make this resolution every day and I can’t seem to make it last more than a few miles…
