Tractor Trailer Accidents Blocking 71 / 75 (Sharonville, Ontario: sales, daycare, how much)

[YoMikey617]

This is the 2nd occurrence that I've caught in the news this week. The other one was at early in the morning just before rush hour. I'll see if I can find it and post the link.

The Enquirer - Accidents stall I-75 southbound

* How much are these through-town tractor trailer accidents costing the thousands of drivers affected by them ??? I would bet that each accident costs those who are affected at least $20K or more in lost time, gas, etc. During rush hour, I bet the cost could be quantified in the hundreds of thousands.

I realize that on occasion drivers are probably cutting-off trucks and contributing to the accidents. But every time I drive on 75 between downtown and 275 I ALWAYS see truckers doing the craziest things. Yesterday I was driving south on 75 during rush, and the northbound side was backed up from downtown all the way out to Sharonville. HUNDREDS of semi trucks are driving northbound during the height of rush hour.

There's no reason that truckers from Michigan, Ontario, Kansas, and Oklahoma need to drive through the center of town during the rush. Ditto for all those Yahoo's from Michigan and Ontario in their Winnebagos driving 40mph.

[jlrosen]

public roads have a right for everyone to use them

[Hartwell Girl]

yomikey...I agree. Its not about the right to use public roads, its about safety for everyone.

[jlrosen]

if you want fewer cars, make it a toll road

[Hartwell Girl]

That is the only positive I see with the possible toll talk...a lot of traffic will probably use 275 around the tolls.

[Crew Chief]

YoMikey, ANY kind of accident or even a cop on the shoulder giving a ticket slows down traffic. Prohibiting ANY group of vehicles from a roadway that EVERYONE pays for is just wrong. (Why don't we prohibit automobile traffic on I-75 between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m since much of our nation's goods move during those hours and cars would just interfere with interstate commerce??? Same idea...)

By the way, studies (including one by the university of Michigan )show that car drivers cause more than 70% of car/truck crashes.

The point I'd like to make is that we ALL need to make our roads safer through attentive driving and sharing the roads with each other.

(While I've got my soap box out; I sure wish every car driver understood how wrong the truck lane restriction on I-71/75 Southbound going up the Cut in the Hill is. If I can maintain the 55 mph speed limit why do I have to be stuck behind the truck that is loaded to near the legal limit and chugs up the hill at 35 mph? It's OK for grandpa to go 35 mph in his pickup truck out in the 2nd lane or a U Haul van to do the same thing out there. And what about cars who go slow in our two lanes. Sometimes it'd be nice of the people who make idiotic laws like this could understand the consequences instead of doing what they think will get them re-elected...)

[YoMikey617]

Originally Posted by Crew Chief

YoMikey, ANY kind of accident or even a cop on the shoulder giving a ticket slows down traffic. Prohibiting ANY group of vehicles from a roadway that EVERYONE pays for is just wrong. (Why don't we prohibit automobile traffic on I-75 between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m since much of our nation's goods move during those hours and cars would just interfere with interstate commerce??? Same idea...)

By the way, studies (including one by the university of Michigan )show that car drivers cause more than 70% of car/truck crashes.

The point I'd like to make is that we ALL need to make our roads safer through attentive driving and sharing the roads with each other.

(While I've got my soap box out; I sure wish every car driver understood how wrong the truck lane restriction on I-71/75 Southbound going up the Cut in the Hill is. If I can maintain the 55 mph speed limit why do I have to be stuck behind the truck that is loaded to near the legal limit and chugs up the hill at 35 mph? It's OK for grandpa to go 35 mph in his pickup truck out in the 2nd lane or a U Haul van to do the same thing out there. And what about cars who go slow in our two lanes. Sometimes it'd be nice of the people who make idiotic laws like this could understand the consequences instead of doing what they think will get them re-elected...)

I get your point... But when a car crashes, it can be moved quickly. When a tractor trailer truck crashes, it seems like it's always blocking the expressway for several hours or spilling some kind of toxic substance all over the roadway. I mean this happens A LOT in this town (I consider once every 2 weeks a lot). And when one truck blocks the entire expressway during rush hour, thousands of people are affected. Thousands of people's time (which you could multiply by the ripple effect (IE. the mother who has to pay $50 for picking up her kid late from daycare)), thousands of people's gas, etc etc. So what's the difference if a truck rolls over on I-75 or on I-275 at Winton Road? SOMEBODY'S gonna be inconvenienced. Every time I slow/stop for a crash, I lose money, too.

And every time I happen to drive inbound during the evening outbound rush, I'm always amazed by the hundreds of tractor trailers jamming the outbound expressway during the height of evening rush hour. It's 5pm, thousands of people are trying to get home from work, and thousands of out-of-state tractor trailers drive right through the center of town at the same time. You would think that spending the extra $6 to use 275 West would save them time and money vs. parking on I-75 for an extra hour. Thousands of truckers are trying to deliver their loads but all the darn CARS keep delaying them... And what difference does it make if the truck is from Ohio or North Dakota? They both pay federal road taxes as well as apportioned road taxes to states they travel through. My experience is, that as long as traffic is still moving, it's usually about the same amount of time (or less) to stay on I-75 than to go around on I-275. There's no guarantee that a wreck on I-275 won't happen in front of them, either...

As far as your having to sit behind other truckers going 35MPH up the hill... THAT'S THE ENTIRE POINT OF THE RULE. If truckers were allowed to use other lanes, they'd all be blocking the cut in the hill making everybody else as miserable as the truckers. If I can maintain the speed limit in the left two lanes, I won't be in anyone else's way...

I respect your choice of profession, but after the hundreds of times I've been cut off or trapped behind convoy-driving truckers...? I have no sympathy whatsoever for frustrated truckers. Perhaps this wouldn't even be an issue if the thousands of out-of-state truckers used 275 West. By that logic, you wouldn't be able to use I-75 in whichever is not your state; OH or KY... The interstate system was built for ALL traffic, not just those users that want to turn it into their own private commuter route. There are poor drivers in BOTH cars AND trucks. I've seen plenty of examples in both.

[YoMikey617]

Originally Posted by jlrosen

if you want fewer cars, make it a toll road

I think this will be inevitable. If not to pay for a new Brent Spence, then for traffic and smog reduction. But I have doubts as to whether or not this will happen anytime soon with the oil crises.

This would be a really good time to renew the push for a regional lightrail project. Whenever gas prices rise or when major construction projects slow traffic, cities with commuter rails always experience soaring ridership.

[jlrosen]

AAA reports it will cost the average american $8121 to operate a car this year. If a family has 2 cars that is $16,000. And that is based on average fuel costs of $3.33.

the half cent increase of the sales tax would have cost the average family $68 a year. or the equivalent of single tank of gas.