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Safety on the Roads, by Dave Werner

Snow and ice control — Part I

With winter conditions rapidly approaching, snow and ice control on our streets and highways becomes a priority for highway crews. Decades ago, roads were seldom plowed until morning and almost never sanded or salted. Today, however, with our very mobile society, we expect bare roads throughout ...

Alcohol, speeding account for over half of fatalities

In 2023, the latest year for available statistics, 40,901 people died on highways in the U.S. A shocking 59% of these fatalities had alcohol and/or speeding as contributing to the cause of the deaths, according to a study by the law firm of John Foy and Associates of Atlanta, Georgia. When you ...

Why we need speed cameras near schools

If you are a reader of these weekly articles on vehicle and traffic laws and traffic safety, you are aware of the many times the subject of speed cameras for enforcement has been discussed. This week’s article is yet another one. Speed cameras are being used more and more where school ...

Zipper merge on I-490 Rochester project

Nearly 10 years ago, something new — the “zipper merge” — was discussed in a “Safety on the Roads” column. Over the summer, the state Department of Transportation has implemented a zipper merge on I-490 in Rochester, where new bridges are being constructed over the Erie Canal and ...

Cannabis, other drugs increasing problem

Drug-impaired driving is a growing problem in the U.S., and the laws are complex and vary by state. More than 400 drugs tracked by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) can cause impairment, and each has a different impact on every user. According to information from the ...

How passing, no-passing zones are determined

On all major highways, lines are painted on the roadway to indicate whether passing another vehicle is allowed or not. Most drivers know that yellow lines separate vehicles traveling in opposite directions and white lines separate vehicles traveling in the same direction. On two-lane roads, ...