To the editor:
As I am sitting in my car on one of several of the daily delays for the single-lane traffic to pass as State Road 46 is being repaved, the following thoughts came to me:
1. This repaving would not have been necessary for at least another five years if someone in authority at the Indiana Department of Transportation had not made the decision to install rumble strips between Nashville and a portion of the road to Columbus. This decision to install those strips was obviously one that comes at high cost to the taxpayers of the state and of our area. Since the roadway has failed because of this installation, who has the accountability for this obvious poor decision?
2. The installation of the rumble strips, ostensibly done as a safety factor, was flawed at several points. The strips, installed some five or more years ago, were too aggressive, meaning they were cut much too deeply into the pavement and were placed at locations which caused State Road 46 to be much narrower than it was prior to this installation. The narrowing of the usable roadway could not have created a safer highway. Was the company who incorrectly installed these strips held accountable, financially or otherwise?
3. The rumble strip installation caused the highway to fail and thus, the current repaving project is now necessary and underway. I am advised that the “engineer” of the project explains that the failure was due to installation on a 5- to 7-year-old pavement and that the age of the pavement caused the highway to deteriorate. Again, who made this decision and were they held accountable? I submit that many of us who drive regularly on State Road 46 guessed that the roadway would break up due to the incorrect depth rumble stripping.
4. Now here’s the major point: Indiana DOT will again install the same rumble strips at the same depth on State Road 46 as a part of the repaving project! INDOT is missing something here about learning from a previous mistake. Same rumble strips, same depth, only difference 6 inches outside the side boundaries of the lanes rather than on the lane lines.
5. I think this is another very poor decision in view of what has been the experience.
6. I have called the DOT and the governor to express my concerns.
7. The Indiana DOT phone number is 855-463-6848. The governor’s office phone number is 317-232-4567. I would urge others who may have similar concerns to express them to INDOT and the governor. Concerns can also be left on INDOT’s website: INDOT4U.com.
8. At this point I believe we will have the same issues when the project is completed. In any event, we will apparently again have to deal with rumble strips on State Road 46 and the attendant damages they will likely cause.
David Shaffer, Nashville
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