Kudos
for helpful new Highway 75 traffic light
It refreshing to see that our Idaho Department of Transportation
is improving the busy intersection of Woodside Boulevard and Highway 75 (near
Power Engineers), as well as adding a much needed and innovative new traffic
signal. The stretch of smooth road between Hailey and Bellevue is deceptively
dangerous, and one merely needs to examine local road fatality statistics to
see that dozens of unfortunate deaths and serious injuries have occurred there
in crashes over recent decades.
Moreover, those who perished or were injured in this treacherous
stretch were not mere statistics; but rather many were beloved family and
friends of our tight-knit community.
In further interest of safety, I would urge our that our highway
department discontinue their use of the newfangled energy-saving lights with which
they have “upgraded” their signal lamps; as these often do not generate enough
heat to immediately burn off the gathering snow from their red and green light
covers, during our frequent blustery wintertime blizzards.
Two last items I would like to encourage our open-minded ITD
administrators to keep on their radar for our healthy future are: Lowering the
speed limit on the stretch between Bellevue & Hailey to a more sensible
45 or 50 mph and installing a robust high-walled median strip between the north
and south lanes (along with turnouts at appropriate places, of course).
