The in basket: Nelson Lanchester , Charles Dick and John Bowman ask if the state still plans to increase the speed limit coming out of Gorst southbound.
Monthly Archives: August 2007
Corner cutters in front of CK High
The in basket: John Blackwell writes about the intersection in
front of CK High where Anderson Hill and Bucklin Hill roads
meet.
” I use this intersection on average about 10-20 times per day,” he
said.
“Each day I come to this intersection, I narrowly miss
having a head-on collision because of the cars coming down from
Anderson Hill turning left onto Bucklin Hill. The cars turning
left
there repeatedly cut the corner and narrowly miss the
cars going up the hill towards Anderson Hill.
“There is going to be a wreck there soon if this doesn’t get
resolved.
Extend new reduced speed limit on Hansville Road
The in basket: Steve Mackey says, “Recently the speed limit
was
adjusted from 55 mph to 45 and 50 mph along Hansville (Road).
Just north of the Point No Point Casino and south of Ecology Lane
(the road
to the transfer station) the northbound speed changes from 45 to
50
mph.
“I went into the Public Works office and suggested that they move
the
signs to just north of Ecology Lane,” Steve said. But his
suggestion was not accepted.
“I think the main reason for lowering the speed limits in the first
place was for safety concerns,” he concluded. “Therefore, it would
make sense to consider the safety of those performing the civic
duty of recycling and not just those who were
going to gamble and drink at the … casino.”
Why does Highway 3 jog sideways near Luoto Road?
The in basket: Forrest Butler of Kingston thinks I should
revisit the reason that both the southbound and northbound lanes of
Highway 3 just north of Luoto Road jog slightly sideways.
“Were the engineers responsible
for each section too stubborn to admit one or the other was
off in their calculations?” he asked, before I sent him the real
reason.
Cameras on new Silverdale signal crossarm
The in basket: Jay Hendrick writes, “With all the news about
traffic lights on the Bucklin Hill Road, there has been no mention
about the objects that look like cameras on those lights. If those
are traffic cameras, are they in
operation? If they are there for red light runners, why not
place
some at the most flagrant location of red light runners that
being
Silverdale Way and Bucklin Hill?
More motorcycle transponder answers
The in basket: Lisa Havens of Poulsbo told me a while back that
her motorcycling husband had devised a means of paying his Tacoma
Narrows Bridge toll without having to have one of the special
motorcycle transponders that some riders don’t like.
He paid $30 to have a piece of auto glass cut to the size of the
smaller automobile transponder and stuck one to it. He carries it
in his jacket and it seemed to be working, she said.
She also wondered whether a motorcycle with a transponder mounted
that is being towed on a trailer behind a car with its own
transponder would be regarded as separate vehicles by the
electronic toll collection readers and get double-billed.
Tips on protecting a Wave2Go pass
The in basket: Leroy McVay of Poulsbo thinks ferry users can
learn from a mistake his family made in July and what they have
done about it.
“We tossed out what we thought was a used up
passenger Wave2Go pass,” he said. “Instead, it was a half-used
car & driver pass.
“A toll both attendant told us if we could find that piece of paper
they give you when you buy the pass, they can
track the bar code and take action. Needless to
say, I tossed it as just another scrap of paper.
Can signal timing in Poulsbo be improved?
The in basket: Patty Hill and Russ Freeman wonder about the
timing of traffic signals on Highway 305 at Bond Road and Hostmark
Street.
Patty said, “If you plan to turn left from Highway 305 onto
Bond during rush hour, you can wait for a long time once
getting into the turn lane until you actually get through the
light. It was nine minutes when I timed myself the other
day from getting into the lane until I got through – and there were
no delays, cars broken down, etc.
“What are the chances of someone trying to alleviate this – maybe
just adding another 30 seconds to the left turn signal at rush
hour time only would help a bit and it’s not a long time frame
to have the other locations wait – or are we beating a dead
horse?”
Russ says it doesn’t appear that the widening of 305 that is under
way will correct signal timing he thinks hinders smooth traffic
flow in the area.
How about a post to prevent illegal right turns?
The in basket: Keith W. Oien writes, “I have finally reached my
limit regarding drivers driving on the shoulder of the road to
bypass cars stopped at red lights, to make right hand turns.
“Every day, I see cars doing this at the Fairgrounds Road/Central
Valley Road intersection, and at the Waaga Way southbound exit to
northbound Central Valley Road,” he said.
“I am 99.9 percent sure it is illegal to drive on the shoulder of
the road to pass traffic to make right hand turns, and it creates a
very hazardous situation for pedestrians waiting at the
intersection.
Lane confusion in Silverdale
The in basket: Jenny Burke says the two northbound lanes of
Silverdale Way at Bucklin Hill Road don’t line up with those across
the intersection. At least three times while she was in the inside
lane on dark rainy nights, she said, she has found drivers from the
outside lane trying to occupy her lane while crossing.
She asked if any kind of signage or paint would help avoid
this.
