Ramblings-n-Writings

Archive for September 30th, 2008

Okay, this sign cracks me up every time I see it. Why? Look at the width of the road. Does that seriously look like it’s much bigger than one lane? That’s the normal road, not the “one lane” part where half the road is caved away. And just in case the picture might be slightly deceptive and it looks like a wide road, if two vehicles encounter each other, at least one, if not both, will have tires off the edge of the road (in the “two lane” part).

The West Virginia Department of Highways cracks me up. The DOH idea of repairing the road? Warning signs, a yield sign, and stones in the ditch so vehicles can get around the cave in. Not an unreasonable gesture on the DOH’s part, but that was two, maybe three, months ago. Where’s the regular repair? The caved in part drops off about 6-7 feet, so if a car accidently goes off the road, say when it’s icy this winter, they’ll be rolling down a nice slope right into a creek.

An important point to mention here is that West Virginia has one of the highest gas taxes in the nation (51 cents a gallon) so we can maintain our roads. (That reasoning is straight from our governor, Joe Manchin, too.) Huh? How is a sign “maintaining”? With signs like these and a plethora of dirt roads (Remember the country song line “red dirt roads”? We got miles of ‘em here.), I have to wonder. And then there’s the national report that says West Virginia supposedly has some of the best roads in the nation – maybe as long as you stay on the main highway.

That 51 cent gas tax means when my parents are paying $3.37 a gallon for gas in Pennsylvania, we’re paying a minimum of $3.88, typically more. I lived in Pennsylvania for the majority of my life. I can honestly say that I never encountered roads in such pathetic conditions as ours in W.Va. Obviously something isn’t right somewhere.

Oh, and because of that 51 cent gas tax, our state has one of the poorest economies in the nation. Do away with the gas tax, and watch our economy get a boost. Seriously, if I buy 10 gallons of gas, I pay $5.10 just in tax. If I fill my car one time a week, that’s $20.40 in tax for the month or $244.88 for the year. I can think of a hundred different things to buy for $244.88 that would help local retailers, not big oil, and certainly not our local roads.

Okay, I’m done with my soapbox now. =)