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Monday, July 23, 2007
Roadwork on 34! -- Oh, Wait...
If you see big machines growling over Highway 34 east of Madison, don't get excited, thinking Governor Rounds and Congress have submitted to our thunderous local PR campaign, see the memo from SDDOT. Sorry, kids: we're just getting crack-and-seat plus asphalt resurfacing. The job includes, among other things, a right turn lane (is that the one at the ethanol plant, or do we get another one at another intersection?). Highway 34 will remain open throughout the project, but traffic will be reduced temporarily to (oh! agony!) two lanes as the workers resurface first the westbound, then the eastbound lanes. Asphalt overlay starts August 6, so keep your eyes open, and give the construction workers room to do their job.
Or better yet, take Second street out of town, past the park, and all the way to Wentworth, then head south and get back on 34.
ReplyDeleteThat's the route I usually take. A bit slower, but a lot less congested when we start seeing bottlenecks on 34!
Ah, the Wentworth route -- old 34! That's how we always went to Sioux Falls when I was little. I still take that route as part of the Norwegian Boulevard to Brookings. Great trees, a glimpse of Lake Milwaukee... hey! maybe the Wentworth Bar can offer some detour specials (on pop, of course)!
ReplyDeleteCorey: Have you done a blog on the Highway 34 expansion project from Madison to I-29? The group's site is www.sdhighway34.com, part of www.madisonsd.com and it gives some interesting information on the traffic growth on highway 34 including over 200 semi-tractor trailers a day heading to Dakota Ethanol at Wentworth, hundreds of new drivers driving to Lake Brandt, Lake Madison and Lake Herman. In fact, the graph shows traffic today on Highway 34 is ahead of traffic projected in 2015 for several four-lane highways that have already been completed. We're only a cell phone away from having a fatality from turning trucks and impatient drivers. Your blog may spur additional interest from our legislators, governor and congressional delegation to help speed up funding for the four-lane expansion. Maybe you've already explored the subject earlier.
ReplyDeleteI've posted a couple times about the high hopes for Highway 34: "Four Lanes for 34? Get Behind 106" [2007.06.30] and "Expanding Highway 34 -- Plan B" [2007.05.05]. I recognize we have an uphill battle to convince the powers-that-be to prioritize us over other projects. I also know from SiteMeter that people seem a lot more interested in reading about Shawn Cable than transportation and economic development. Nonetheless, Sitemeter reports the occasional visit from folks from the House and Senate as well.
ReplyDeleteI've been told that I'm not going to change the world from the comfort of my keyboard. Nuts to that! Every little bit of publicity helps.
By the way, I don't know if I can spur any additional interest in the project, but Blogspot is pretty useful for getting web search attention. Google Highway 34 and expansion, and one of my blog entries pops up right below SDHighway34.com on in the first ten search results. I'm happy to donate the free publicity. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWhile chatting with the vivacious Mrs. Madville Times, I recall something Anon said: "We're only a cell phone away from having a fatality from turning trucks and impatient drivers."
ReplyDeleteGiven that looming danger, while we wait for the gears of federal transportation funding to grind our way, should we consider some more immediate solutions, like banning cell phones from the front seat to reduce crashes and lowering the speed limits to reduce the damage done when crashes happen?