Stop fright nights on SH 75
OK. We can accept the obvious?that the folks at the Idaho Department of Transportation blew it when they scheduled the State Highway 75 resurfacing project to begin the last week of September.
We can accept the fact that someone bought the valley?s ?warm sunny days, cool nights, and beautiful fall colors? marketing hook, line and sinker, rod-reel-boat, and ignored the year?s wetter than average weather. And, we appreciate the fact that the contractor planned a lot of the work on the project for off-peak nighttime hours.
We can accept the fact that the ITD and its contractor are scrambling to find ways to dig themselves out of the weather hole that has left them with 2.3 miles of gouged and ground-up pavement and potholes in the already improved segments. We are trying hard to accept the fact that there?s no way to fix these problems until the weather improves.
What we cannot accept is the danger to drivers who must navigate the torn-up stretch, particularly at night.
At night, the area under construction is a no-man?s land, and it?s not much better in broad daylight. It?s impossible for drivers to determine where they are in the vast expanse of black?no lines, no lanes, no clues, no safety. One leftover road sign simply advises ?No Passing.? No kidding. Sudden snow squalls and cloud bursts complicate matters.
Every night is fright night on this stretch, with the lights of oncoming cars sometimes a driver?s only clue as to where they should be on the pitted pavement.
We understand that pressure on the state?s highway funds is always huge?the need for highway improvements is vastly greater than Idaho?s pocketbook. But we don?t understand why the state and its contractor can?t afford to haul out a few of those orange plastic barrels and use them to delineate and separate highway lanes. They can?t be that expensive?and they?re reusable.
Halloween is over.
The ITD and its contractor need to end the fright nights before someone gets killed.
