We received a letter recently from the road authority advising of some road changes in front of our office. That comes off the back of a colleague who has complained over and over and over again to the road authority on the misuse of road by other road users that results in multiple accidents. But with the proposed solution, I can only see this colleague is going to complain yet again, this time not about the problem, but the solution.
You probably think that this guy must be the “bitch-about-everything” type of person, but judge it for yourself after you’ve read this post.
The Problem
About a year ago, a bus lane was installed on the main road just outside our office, much like the M4 bus lane. Because our car park is located at the back of building, we have to go into a side street to access it. At the T-intersection, there are “Keep Clear” signs drawn on the road so that cars can turn into the street. In order to turn into this side street, the car will have to cut through 3 lanes of traffic and the bus lane.
Now here is the problem.
The 3 lanes are usually packed in the morning rush hour, and drivers are supposedly not allowed to drive on the bus lane unless they are turning into side streets. Dickheads ignore what’s legal and drive straight down the bus lane in order to avoid the traffic jam. They zoom straight down one end of the road to the other end.
Drivers turning into the side street can’t see the car flying past down the bus lane, and so got hit. I know at least three colleagues whose car was totalled because of idiots.
The Solution
So, after endless complains from a colleague who’s almost threatening to sue if he ever get hit, the road authority finally did something…. stupid.
They are planning to impose a “No turning” sign at the T-intersection, making turning into side street illegal in morning rush hour. Those who want to turn in will have to perform a U-turn some 200 metres further down the road.
Problem solved, right?
The Problem with the Solution
From an engineering prospective, this solution is perfect. No cars turning in, no accident! Great. But from a social prospective, this is fucking ridiculous.
Basically what the road authority is doing is making something that was legal illegal, makes no attempts at punishing those who were doing the wrong thing in the first place. In fact, it just encourages those who were doing the wrong thing to continue to do the wrong thing. It makes no attempt to education the people about the use of bus lanes.
What kind of retarded solution is that?
0 Responses to “When is a solution not a solution?”