The in basket: My neighbor Teresa Adams said she and her son had a dispute the other day about whether there is a brief 35 mile per hour speed limit in Gorst, with a 40 mph zone on each side of it.
She lost the contest, as she contended there were no signs saying that. When she looked closely, there they were, she said, one in each direction.
The out basket: I had to look carefully too, as the one heading toward Bremerton is tucked under the overpass. I had to get pretty close to it to see the 35 mph segment, which is beneath an arrow indicating a curve. I didn’t drive all the way to Bremerton and return to check that the other direction has one, but Don Palmer of Gorst has complained a couple of times in the past that an arrow sign warning people coming from Bremerton of the upcoming curve isn’t sufficient warning, so I’ll assume it has 35 mph shown beneath it too.
But they aren’t speed limit signs. Yellow signs indicating a speed are advisory. You can’t be ticketed for going faster if you’re within the speed limit otherwise posted. Only the white signs with black lettering are enforceable with a ticket for exceeding the speed shown.
So, for example, the 35 mph sign approaching Ross Point coming out of Port Orchard is advisory, as is the 10 mph sign facing Highway 303 traffic about to turn to go north on Highway 3 in Silverdale. Both are yellow. There are hundreds of other examples in the county, many just before a speed hump.
I find that I can do 10 mph faster than the speeds shown on those yellow signs without any discomfort making the curve (most are posted at curves). Of course, if you’re driving a big awkward top-heavy vehicle and tip over, or hit an oncoming vehicle, you can be ticketed for going too fast for conditions, even if you got down to the advised speed.
That is what is wrong with alot of drivers out there who see those yellow advisory speed limit signs, they drive those speeds and all it does is jam up traffic. Now while there are some spots like a sharp curve that may need them, being posted on an on ramp is not. Because all it does is make those drivers out there who dont know what the signs mean to say hit the highway doing 40 miles an hour and then the same happens. Traffic gets backed up with drivers having to get over or slow way down after hitting their brakes because some nimwitted driver is hitting the freeway doing 40. And then what happens is you get drivers out there with road rage and others just pissed off. There should be highway posted speed limit signs on the straight away onramps so that when those cars hit the bottom of the ramps they are up so highway speed. That way it does not alter the highway traffic speeds and everyone can drive happier and safer.