Wimpy PennDOT? (houses, neighborhood, taxi)

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by Craziaskowboi

It's not the grade or height of the hills. It's the absolute lack of flatness.

As a trucker I was in many states. There are only four that I have not traveled to. Many states have their own problems. Take Georgia and their problems when they rebuilt I-95; they have to drive pylons deep in the mud before they hit bedrock. Or they have to deal with hurricanes and flat land is also prone to flooding. In Wisconsin they cannot use cinders because it will clog their culverts. In Texas and other Southern states it can get so hot that the pavement buckles. Some of our Western states deal with earthquakes and fault zones; California has some pretty crappy roads. Of course many Southern states on both coast suffer from relentless brush and forest fires.

As I drove through the other states I always looked at the proficiency of their road work. I like to be a part of the best team and PA fails. I have watched Ohio build a half mile long bridge with three lanes and twenty one piers in about the same time as our State rebuilt a one hundred foot long two lane bridge with no piers other than the bridge abutment. I have watched as NJ laid more asphalt in the off hours of one night than we did in months. Tennessee paving crews put us to shame. But it isn't only about the speed; it is about the quality of the workmanship and how it holds up in the long run.

More drivers are killed in work zones than workers. Only one in ten fatalities in a work zone involves a pedestrian. Average motorist do not expect the traffic to come to an abrupt stop and that is what kills many. I have been in many 60 mph work zone speed zones that have had far fewer accidents than PA's slow work zones. There are other states that know how to lay our work zones far better than PA.

I don't want excuses; I want us to be the best. It is hard to believe that we do not have the equipment to keep our roads open when we have only two inches of snow. First we blame the hills and now the trucks!

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by Craziaskowboi

It's not the grade or height of the hills. It's the absolute lack of flatness.

That is some interesting information, I knew it was going to be high but didn't think it would be that high. That said for it to be useful you would also have to know where the roads are built. A lot of them are going to be on limited but flatter ground.

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by fisheye

Some of our Western states deal with earthquakes and fault zones;

I was on this divided secondary highway in California, straight as arrow 50 miles in each direction except this one minor S curve. It had shifted that much.

[North Beach Person]

Fisheye mentioned work zones. If there's one single thing that drives me absolutely bat **** crazy when I drive in PA it's work zones.

You see the sign "Work Zone 1 mile". You get into the single lane and then you go for miles until you get to the crew working on one 50 foot section. Then you drive for more miles in the single lane until you exit the work zone.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by thecoalman

I was on this divided secondary highway in California, straight as arrow 50 miles in each direction except this one minor S curve. It had shifted that much.

You really feel that shifting in CA when you're trying to sleep in a sleeper birth!

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

Fisheye mentioned work zones. If there's one single thing that drives me absolutely bat **** crazy when I drive in PA it's work zones.

You see the sign "Work Zone 1 mile". You get into the single lane and then you go for miles until you get to the crew working on one 50 foot section. Then you drive for more miles in the single lane until you exit the work zone.

That happens on I-84 all the time. Sometimes it is five miles of one lane restrictions for that 50 feet of work zone. Sometimes they will have multiple work zones in that five mile, one lane restrictive area, but only one fifty foot work zone is an 'active' work zone.

In PA one of our biggest problems are narrow shoulders on our roads. Many states will use the shoulders as an 'extra' lane during construction projects. Ohio does that all the time and they simply post signs that no commercial vehicles are allowed to drive on those shoulders (since the shoulders do not have the same base as the regularly used road lanes). In western PA on I-376, I-76, and I-79 PA has used the shoulders (like Ohio) - perhaps that is some of Ohio rubbing off on PA? However, in eastern PA, many of our roads have very narrow shoulders and could not be used for the same work zone alternative.

[North Beach Person]

Something relevant

exploreJeffersonPA.com – Controversy Brewing Over PennDOT’s Interstate 80 Commercial Vehicle Bans

[rowhomecity]

Honestly the trucks can go in Pennsylvania. I am all for rail freight investment.

Do you know how many people have been killed from trucks in one year alone? I am over them.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

Something relevant

exploreJeffersonPA.com – Controversy Brewing Over PennDOT’s Interstate 80 Commercial Vehicle Bans

I wanted to say that is a good article. However it doesn't point out one of the other problems with state wide bans on commercial vehicles: regional problems or lack of problems. Some winter storms only affect the northern counties and some only affect the southern counties. It could also be a storm that only affects the western counties or one that only affects the eastern counties. So why not keep the routes open that are not affected? Then companies would not loose money like what was pointed out in your link.

It isn't only that; but we have differences in the quality of services provided by the different PA PennDOT sheds across the State; some do a great job and some you never see when they are needed. Maybe they have manpower problems, problems over spending on salt supplies or they cannot find anymore salt for the season, or they have new safety requirements before committing their workers?

I am also worried about this latest trend because it might not be the whole story. I worry that maybe PennDOT spending on pensions is out of control (like many of our cities) and they no longer have the funds available that they once enjoyed?

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by rowhomecity

Honestly the trucks can go in Pennsylvania. I am all for rail freight investment.

Do you know how many people have been killed from trucks in one year alone? I am over them.

Less than are killed by even motorcycles: https://www.penndot.gov/TravelInPA/S...CFB_linked.pdf. And far less than our regular motorist that are allowed to travel on slippery/snowy/icy roads.