STUPID GOVERNMENT TRAFFIC CONTROL

Here are the wrong things that governments are doing that make traffic more dangerous and cost drivers more money:

  1. Two-way bike lanes on one side of the street:
    sidepath danger

    Bad sidepath
     

    There is a hidden hazard with this design:

    If a driver is waiting to make a left turn across the bicycle sidepath, oncoming vehicles can hide a bicycle heading toward the sidepath intersection from the same direction the driver came from:

    1. The driver approaches the intersection intending to turn left across the sidepath.
    2. Oncoming traffic keeps the driver from making the left turn and from seeing the sidepath on his left.
    3. The cyclist approaches the intersection on the part of the sidepath hidden from the driver.
    4. The cyclist starts to cross the intersection while the driver and the cyclist are hidden from each other.
    5. A gap in oncoming traffic occurs, the driver turns left across the sidepath, and hits the cyclist.

    If two sidepaths are provided, one on each side of the road, which are each one-way in the same direction the nearest vehicle lane travels, this hazard is not there.

    Any two-way bike path must be at least 60 feet from the parallel road.

  2. Lower speed limits that waste energy:

    Liberals and democrats seem to have the mantra that the slower a vehicle goes, the higher the gas mileage will be. This is not true in most vehicles with transmissions. This is actual data the page author collected from cars he actually drove.

    SPEED CAR 1
    2002 Pontiac Bonneville
    CAR 2
    2012 Chevrolet Cruze
    CAR 3
    2010 Mazda 5 Wagon
    CAR 4
    1957 Chevrolet Turboglide*
    Accelerating
    CAR 4
    1957 Chevrolet Turboglide*
    Cruising
    GEARRATIOMPGGEARRATIOMPG GEARRATIOMPG PHASERATIOMPGPHASERATIOMPG
    512.927.214.586.2 13.625.2 12.675.612.675.6
    1012.927.222.969.6 13.625.2 12.675.621.609.4
    1521.591331.9115 21.929.7 12.675.631.0015
    2021.591331.9115 21.929.7 21.609.431.0015
    2521.591341.4420 31.2815 21.609.431.0015
    3031.002151.0028 31.2815 21.609.431.0015
    3531.002151.0028 4.93820 21.609.431.0015
    4031.002151.0028 4.93820 31.001531.0015
    454.70530 6.7438 5.69227 31.001531.0015
    504.70530 6.7438 5.69227 31.001531.0015
    BEST445 MPH 645 MPH 545 MPH 340 MPH 325 MPH

    Notice that 45 MPH is the lowest speed that all of these cars achieve their highest gas mileage. When their transmissions downshift at lower speeds, their gas mileages are reduced by the change in gear ratio.

    * Note these things about the 1957 Chevy
      - This car as sold was set up for performance, not fuel economy, so it has lower gas mileage.
      - The Turboglide transmission stays in the highest phase (gear) until a need for acceleration or power actually occurs. So when the engine is lightly loaded, it still has the good mileage of the highest gear.
      - The Turboglide transmission actually obeys the expectations of the liberals over a larger range of speeds because it stays in the highest gear as shown above.

  3. Speed bumps and humps that hurt invalids and damage vehicles:

    This is mainly a problem of the politicians (usually Democrats) wanting traffic to flow at a lower speed than the design speed of the road. Instead of accepting the design speed of the road as the speed traffic will naturally flow at, they install obstacles to try to lower the speed traffic flows at. Too often they use speed bumps or humps.

    Speed bumps are abrupt changes in pavement level over short distances.

    Speed humps are more gentle changes over a longer distance.

    Speed bumps and humps cause the following troubles:

  4. Use of YIELD signs on freeway entrance ramps:

    There are three different ways traffic on an entrance ramp is added to freeway traffic:

    The YIELD configuration has:
    - A YIELD sign on the ramp
    - No sign on the freeway
    - No acceleration lane.
    yield sign Yield yield sign
    The MERGE configuration has:
    - A MERGE sign on the freeway
    - No sign on the ramp
    - A properly designed acceleration lane.
    merge sign Merge
    The ADDED LANE configuration has:
    - An ADDED LANE sign on the freeway
    - An ADDED LANE sign on the ramp
    - The ramp gets its own new lane.
    add lane yield sign

    The Yield configuration is cheaper to build, but is dangerous.

    Using the Yield configuration is dangerous because:

  5. Cars stopping where they should be merging:
    Cheat the merge

    MERGE CHEAT
     

    The problem: The merge cheat stops at the end of the freeway exit ramp instead of entering the merge lane.
    This causes the following problems:

    • Instead of merging properly, the merge cheat stops at the end of the ramp (orange line) until he can directly enter the left lane (orange arrow).
    • Apparently the merge cheat wants to turn left at the next intersection.
    • When the merge cheat stops, the driver behind does not expect the stop and often rear-ends the merge cheat's car.
    • In heavy traffic, the merge cheat blocks the ramp until the way clears to cross to the left lane. This can back ramp traffic up onto the freeway.
    • In practice, the page author has always been able to merge into traffic and then change lanes with no trouble (assuming nobody stops).
    stay in lane sign

    Possible remedies:

    • STAY IN LANE sign at the end of the ramp.
    • A solid white line for the first 100 feet.
    • A double solid white line for the first 100 feet.
    • Control the ramp with a traffic signal.

    (Orange markings added by page author)

  6. Lax maintenance of traffic detectors:

    This is usually the result of the government in charge deciding to not fund traffic signal maintenance to spend the money elsewhere. This causes the following problems:

  7. Stopping or slowing traffic unnecessarily:

    This always wastes gasoline.

  8. Allowing yellow trap:
    Yellow trap

    YELLOW TRAP
     

    flashing yellow arrows fix

    FYA FIX
     

    Yellow trap occurs only when all of these conditions are simultaneously met:

    1. Left turns can be made through gaps in traffic during the circular green.
    2. Both circular greens for the same street are displayed together.
    3. One circular green ends before the other one does.
    4. The left-turning driver with the shortened green expects oncoming traffic to stop.
    5. The left-turning driver with the shortened green turns in front of oncoming traffic with a green light.
    6. If drivers are not wary, an accident happens.

    Yellow trap has been prohibited in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) since 2005.
    It must be removed or warned with a sign.

    Governments have allowed yellow trap for the following reasons:

    • Officials do not know what yellow trap is or that it is happening.
    • Officials do not know that yellow trap has been prohibited since 2005.
    • Officials do not want to spend the money needed to prevent yellow trap.
    • Signals are inspected during the day, when yellow trap is rare. Yellow trap is occurring at night when traffic is light.
    • The untrained electrician or policeman in charge of the signals does not know how to stop yellow trap.
    • The untrained electrician or policeman in charge of the signals installed the signal wrong, causing yellow trap.
    • Officials refused to pay for flashing yellow arrows in both directions on the same road.
    • Officials won't pay for the required signs warning that yellow trap can happen.
  9. Improper use of flashing yellow arrows (FYA):
    Yellow trap

    FYA BAD INSTALL YELLOW TRAP
     

    flashing yellow arrows fix

    FYA CORRECT INSTALL
     

    Governments have misused flashing yellow arrows in the following ways:

    • Improperly installed FYA causing yellow trap
    • Improperly installed signal or FYA causing second yellow trap (right turn green arrow conflicts with FYA left clearing on yellow)
    • Improperly installed FYA causing third yellow trap (signal reservices pedestrian phase that inhibits FYA)
    • Improperly installed signal causing little yellow trap (oncoming yellow lights end at different times)
    • Improperly installed signal causing green trap (signal starts oncoming green lights at different times (with no left turn signals)
    • Failing to put FYA signal faces on opposite approaches on the same street (can't prevent yellow trap).
    • Using FYA signal faces with the old signal sequences (can't prevent yellow trap).
    • Using FYA with improper geometry for permissive turns.
    • Misguided government officials think protecting pedestrians is more important than preventing yellow trap.
    • Misguided government officials think protecting emergency vehicles is more important than preventing yellow trap.
    • Misguided government officials don't think signals must be reprogrammed during lane-closing construction to prevent yellow trap.
    • Any sequence that allows the flashing yellow arrow to end before its oncoming circular green
    • Used FYA where it is not allowed.

    The usual cause of a FYA yellow trap is a badly trained signal technician not understanding yellow trap prevention.

    • This person leaves the controller phasing the same and just rigs a flasher on the adjacent circular green output.
    • Officials need to keep an eye on what their technicians are doing.
    • Contracts with local electricians are NOT good enough with FYA.
  10. Allowing bicycles to ride on sidewalks:

    This is dangerous, not to pedestrians, but to cyclists and motorists.

    Bicycles belong on the road or a dedicated bicycle path, not on the sidewalk. And bicycles must obey all traffic laws.

  11. Back-in angled parking spaces:

    This is dangerous because not all vehicles have the needed range of vision to use it.

REMEDIES

  1. Trained engineers, not politicians, should be making these decisions.
  2. The safety of all traffic should not depend on budget decisions.
  3. The latest knowledge must be used, not knowledge from the 1920s.
  4. Untrained people should not be taking care of traffic control equipment.
  5. Political beliefs must not enter into traffic decisions.