Construction Zones

Well it's that time of the year for road construction to be starting up, so I have to ask that question....

Why do people insist on being shiny happy people while being in a construction zone?

Trying to pass at the last second, riding your ass, etc., just to save themselves a few seconds. Some places do not leave you much margin for error, so either you become friends with a J-barrier or the tires of a semi.

It just bugs the crap out of me.

True enough. Give way, be polite, know it sucks for everyone.

Of course then there are the cases like a woman last week (newer Kia with handicap placard on rear view) who absolutely WOULD NOT give me a space to merge into our current constant construction zone road. Everyone else was zip wring in just fine but she had to be shines and happy and fight for that one car length like it was going to get her to her destination that much faster. My inner redneck came out a bit and when the car in from of her suddenly sped up I may have passed her in the last of the merge lane and laugh as she shot me both birds and shouted herself hoarse.

She's just lucky I didn't brake check her too hard. I suspect the three way hitch on the suburban would have spoiled her bumper/radiator/engine/day. Don't shiny-happy me lady, my shiny-happy dial goes WAY up!

I always slow -way- down for construction zones.. can't tell you how many fingers I have gotten from people once the road opens up again and they can pass me at a high rate of speed just to prove how much I slowed them down

mad_machine wrote: I always slow -way- down for construction zones..

Thank you. I work in construction zones.

Azzhats outnumber decent people approximately 10:1. That is probably a gross under estimate.

I guarantee if the average person had to spend 15 minutes dressed in yellow standing in a construction zone, they'd drive differently.

Actually, they'd probably be dead.

Most people forget that there are PEOPLE working out there. There have been too many kids left fatherless or motherless because some toolbag has to get nowhere 2 minutes quicker.

They've got both I-75 and I-71 under construction in Cincinnati so they've dropped it down to 45mph. I am apparently the only driver in the entire... tri-state... AREA! that does under 65 or 70 through there (usually somewhere between the 45 and 50 mark on the speedo). And of course most folks can't just slide over a lane (I am in the far right lane, of course) and go around... No, they have to fly right up onto my bumper, swerve wildly into the next lane -- sometimes to the left, and occasionally to the right where the lane is ending in about 500 feet -- and then swerve wildly back in front of me.

When it comes to merging, folks don't need a construction zone to act like a d-bag. I never understood the mentality of going right up until the lane actually ends before trying to get over. When I'm leaving four and five car lengths in front of me while nearly stopped, it's amazing how many people will drive right past that easy entry into traffic to try to muscle their way two cars ahead of me...

Whenever we can (like working on a minor or low traffic road), we work hard to make it hard on people. Block the road with a big excavator, pile of dirt, whatever.

The only way to keep workers safe sometimes is to partially block the road with something too big to ignore to force people to go slow.

It amazes me every night on my way home from work on I-75, which has been a cluster-berkeley for awhile now.

There are signs saying that the left lane ends, for roughly one mile, yet most people don't believe them.

As soon as the signs appear, many douche-bags head to the left lane, hoping to get ahead of those of us who know what's going on and just rolling with E36 M3.

Thank you for making E36 M3 so much better, I hope you got home 30-seconds earlier.

We do the same, people still don't pay attention. Do you want to guess how many times our arrow board has been plowed into only to have the driver step out saying," I didn't see it"In reply to SVreX:

mad_machine wrote: I always slow -way- down for construction zones.. can't tell you how many fingers I have gotten from people once the road opens up again and they can pass me at a high rate of speed just to prove how much I slowed them down

I slow down too but my shiny happy trick is to maliciously comply with the ridiculously early speed limit change. Iowa likes adding large buffer zones. This gets really entertaining when I'm going 25 on the dot on the busiest 6-lane road in town. On the plus side, more and more people comply over time (probably the OHE36 M3 THE SPEED LIMIT ISN'T 45 ANYMORE! reaction when they wonder why a bunch of people are going 25).

grafmiata wrote: It amazes me every night on my way home from work on I-75, which has been a cluster-berkeley for awhile now. There are signs saying that the left lane ends, for roughly one mile, yet most people don't believe them. As soon as the signs appear, many douche-bags head to the left lane, hoping to get ahead of those of us who know what's going on and just rolling with E36 M3. Thank you for making E36 M3 so much better, I hope you got home 30-seconds earlier.

At least that sounds marked. The I-635 construction I remember in Dallas didn't. Chuggin along...chuggin along...chuggin along...WHYTHEFRAK IS THERE A BARREL IN MY LANE?!

SVreX wrote: Whenever we can (like working on a minor or low traffic road), we work hard to make it hard on people. Block the road with a big excavator, pile of dirt, whatever. The only way to keep workers safe sometimes is to partially block the road with something too big to ignore to force people to go slow.

This is true. The ability of people to do stupid things cannot be underestimated. "But there was no sign saying not to drive into the giant hole!"

Iusedtobefast wrote: We do the same, people still don't pay attention. Do you want to guess how many times our arrow board has been plowed into only to have the driver step out saying," I didn't see it"In reply to SVreX:

I actually watched a brand new Jag do that on the PA turnpike years ago... how do you miss a big arrow that lights up and flashes bright yellow lights at you? I can only assume the driver was part moth and was attracted to the light

Another thing about "No Margin For Error", I have to cross the Kankakee River on I-57, which currently is under construction for new southbound and northbound bridges.

So it's currently down to one bridge and no matter which direction you're going, theres a J-Barrier to your left and the River to the right. So, if your being a super douche and you berkeley up, you're either in the barrier or getting a nice view of the River.

And the speed limit is actually 55! Not 45 like most zones. But people still need to drive 80 in the zone.

Luckily the State Police have been vigilant with the work zones. I have seen a lot of people pulled over in the two zones I pass through in the last 2 years.

I respectfully disagree with your statement. Nobody deserves to die because you were slightly inconvenienced.

Yes, closing down more than is necessary is counter-productive. But a lot of it is the "think of the children" behavior - nobody wants an accident on their job. It's not necessarily the workers that make that call, it's often the state or federal owner of the highway.

Not me. For a statement like that, I'll be as disrespectful as possible.

In reply to iadr:

I understand you are saying it that way for dramatic effect, but being a drama queen earns you zero credits at all. Don't be a berkeleying jerk.

I understand the frustration with road construction delays. But the snail's pace is almost always related to the requirements by the DOT, OSHA, the EPA and the processes for road closures, erosion control and compaction as it relates to the weather, etc.

It's pretty obvious that you don't know crap about how to build a road and would rather target innocent workers because of your inconvenience.

I think you fit into the subject at hand rather well.

In reply to iadr:

let me put it this way... would you want several tons of metal. most of it barely piloted with any degree of control or accuracy, whizzing by you at 50,60,70, or 80+ mph with only a couple of feet and pliable plastic cones to keep you safe?

As somebody who does a fairly dangerous job for a living, I take safety very seriously, both my own and that of those around me. Don't be that jerk that gets somebody killed and makes the rules even more stringent

iadr wrote: I drive through a supposed construction zone and have 5-6 days a week since Nov. I think I've seen people working maybe 11-12 times/days. I've seen people being ticketed 15+ times/days. Exactly one one those was on a day they were working. Construction workers need to get their head out of their ass and read the "cried wolf story" and realize how it applies to their signage- or they deserve to die. I'm serious.

keep in mind that the construction workers often aren't responsible for the work zone signs (the movable ones .. sure.. but not the ones with speed limit and amt. of fine on them)

and I found out (someones else's bad luck) that work zone speed limits are in force whether or not work is going on at that time

Saying that a construction worker deserves to die because they allegedly 'caused' an inconvenience is beyond stupid. These are human beings. 90% of what I see wrong with this world is a combination of 'others don't count' and 'sure I can multitask'. If more people would stop thinking only of themselves a lot of the world's problems would just melt away.

Oh, well. As long as there are people who see nothing wrong with construction workers dying over what is ultimately an inconvenience we humans won't be improving.

wb makes a point: the speed limits apply no matter whether there are workers present or not. I got hit with a ticket at 7AM on a Saturday, no workers in sight, 55 in a 35 work zone. When I mentioned to the officer that no one was present he said that did not matter. (For the record, I had driven that same route every day during the week and obeyed the lower speed limit. Not only is it the law it's a damn good idea.) That was probably 8 years ago, since then it seems like the speed limit signs get turned off/closed/whatever on weekends etc when there is nothing being done.

In Nevada, Construction hassles are caused by the multi-contractor system.

Contractor A are the barrel-and-sign folks. Their contract says the stuff has to be in place by X date. If they put it up two weeks early, they've done their job. They've also inconvenienced everyone unnecessarily for 2 weeks before...

Contractor B comes in to dig the hole. Now there's a big hole to drive around. Maybe 2-3 weeks later contractor C comes by to do the work in the hole.

Sometime after that, another contractor stops by to fill the hole. It may be Contractor B, or another one entirely.

Then nothing happens until the re-pave contractor decides to show up. sometime a few weeks after the road is completely repaved, Contractor A stops by to pick up their barrels and signs (but always leave a few behind, somehow) and THEN the road re-opens.

In other states I've lived in, one contractor handles a whole job, subcontracting work as necessary. They don't get paid until the job is complete. You can bet your butt the job gets done faster.

KyAllroad wrote: True enough. Give way, be polite, know it sucks for everyone. Of course then there are the cases like a woman last week (newer Kia with handicap placard on rear view) who absolutely WOULD NOT give me a space to merge into our current constant construction zone road. Everyone else was zip wring in just fine but she had to be shines and happy and fight for that one car length like it was going to get her to her destination that much faster. My inner redneck came out a bit and when the car in from of her suddenly sped up I may have passed her in the last of the merge lane and laugh as she shot me both birds and shouted herself hoarse. She's just lucky I didn't brake check her too hard. I suspect the three way hitch on the suburban would have spoiled her bumper/radiator/engine/day. Don't shiny-happy me lady, my shiny-happy dial goes WAY up!

Although she is a D bag there is nothing that sais that she has to let you in. You are the traffic that is merging you don't have the right of way. Stunts like what you did are bad.. . . very bad. If something had happened you would have been at fault. You and she are both in 2 ton vehicles if something goes wrong it is the workers fixing the road that get the bad end of the deal.

Please re think you approach to these types of situations.

Just got back from a trip downtown, have to go over a bridge and as I crested it there was an accident taking up two lanes probably four blocks ahead. So I moved to the far right lane early, that way I'd be assured of a spot. Few seconds later here comes some prissy highfalutin' girl with a whole bunch of different Greek decals on the back glass of her Highlander, she goes up probably two blocks and starts trying to merge. Of course traffic that close to the accident is at a standstill. So I finally get down to about where she is, she then just muscles over in front of me and stops. I waved her over with my middle finger; I'm not real sure she got the message. Some people just have a helluva sense of entitlement.

I'm the a-hole that won't let last second mergers in. You had a mile to get in the other lane, berk off.

The only other real frustration for me is driving through miles of construction and not seeing one person actually working (and not just nights and weekends).

Spoolpigeon wrote: I'm the a-hole that won't let last second mergers in. You had a mile to get in the other lane, berk off.

I will admit that I have done this numerous times. One time I wouldn't let a guy in who decided to pass the entire line of cars going into the Construction Zone. So, he decided to accelerate and cut off the car two cars in front of me just feet before the barrels ended the lane.

It happened to be an unmarked county trooper.

Whoops

reminds me of a time in PA... I was on 422 out of reading heading towards Philly.. The right lane was stopped for construction and there was a Semi nobody was letting out. I paused all of 30 seconds to let him out (I drove commercial, so I am sympathetic) and the guy behind me lost his mind. Hitting the horn, high beams, screaming at me... 100 yards later the road goes back to 2 lanes and the semi moves over to the right lane and I follow him as Mr Happy behind me is riding my ass. He pulled up next to me and lowered the passenger window... I stomped on the brakes. I did not know if he was going to yell, throw something at me, or shoot.. but I was not going to give him the chance. My little Ti stopped pretty damn quick