Our first Road Rant tipster, Jonathan Marshaleck, 27, of Media, recently e-mailed me about the hazardous, congested intersection of Providence Road (Route 252) near the Route 1/Media Bypass exit/entrance ramps in Upper Providence.
Make sure you check out our video of this busy traffic spot and our reader’s complaint on our Road Watch blog.
A nearby employee said several vehicles have flipped over at this intersection over the years.
For your information, there is a traffic light for vehicles on Route 252 turning on to Route 1 North and headed to the Blue Route (I-476), otherwise drivers headed south on Route 252 would have a hard time making a left turn on to the entrance ramp.
However, there is no traffic light at the Media Bypass exit ramp on to Route 252, so this can be hairy turning off. They probably don’t have a light there because it would be too close to the other traffic light, and the one at Rose Tree Road, and could cause traffic backups.
Got a traffic or road problem you want to rant about? Then why don’t you e-mail me – jroman@delcotimes.com – and include your phone number and the details?
P-L-E-A-S-E don’t send Road Watcher out on a wild-goose chase to videotape a measly pothole that’s only an inch or so deep – just craters only!
But I got to admit: driving eastbound on Baltimore Pike before Wallingford Road in Swarthmore, not far from the Springfield Mall, there’s some choice potholes that make for a real bumpy ride.
Road Rant – don’t just mumble to yourself, fill us in and I’ll videotape the location with or without you and add your rant. Hopefully, it will get the attention of PennDOT or your local municipal highway department.
National Donate Life Month
With April marking National Donate Life Month, PennDOT reminds driver’s license and ID card holders that they can help another person live a fuller and longer life by registering online as an organ donor.
“Citizens considering adding the organ donor designation to their driver’s license or identification card can do so at any time – they do not have to wait for their renewal notices to take action,” said Kurt Myers, PennDOT’s deputy secretary for safety administration.
“With a very small investment of their time, an individual can have the potential to save or enhance lives by visiting PennDOT’s Driver and Vehicle Services Web site and saying ‘yes’ to organ donation,” he said.
Currently, nearly 45 percent of driver’s license and ID card holders are registered organ donors – more than 4.2 million Pennsylvanians. Nearly 3,700 Pennsylvanians have used the online registration service since it began in 2006.
More than 7,100 Pennsylvanians currently await organ transplants.
Card holders and registered vehicle owners can also support the organ donation programs by donating one dollar to the Robert P. Casey Memorial Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Trust Fund at the time of application and/or renewal.
It only takes 90 seconds or less to add the organ donor designation to a driver’s license or ID card by visiting www.dmv.state.pa.us and selecting the Online Services link.
New Bus Driver Policy
A Road Watcher salute to state legislators and PennDOT for announcing a timely change in PennDOT policy last week regarding driving record background checks for school bus driver applicants.
This action was spurred by the fatal crash Feb. 17 involving Frederick Poust III, 38, a school bus driver for the Perkiomen Valley School District. The collision claimed the life of a passenger in a car.
Poust, who allegedly failed to come to full stop at 10 stop signs before turning in front of another vehicle, faces charges of homicide by vehicle in Montgomery County.
The latest crash has raised questions about how someone who has been involved in a prior fatal crash in 1999 was able to get a job driving school buses.
Poust had obtained a Commercial Driver’s License despite the fact that he was involved in another fatal accident in 1999, when distracted by his hand-held cell phone, he drove through a stop sign into an oncoming car, killing a 2-year-old girl.
Since Poust was only cited back then for careless driving, a summary offense, his driving record and a background check would not show that he was charged with a crime.
PennDOT will change its policy to expand accident information contained on a driver record. The severity of the accident will be included on all driver records regardless of the type of license an individual holds.
School districts will receive the entire driver history at no cost and school bus contractors have the option of paying $5 per record or an annual fee of $200 for unlimited access.
Among the legislators who pushed to make this policy change were state Reps. Josh Shapiro, D-153, of Montco, and Bryan R. Lentz, D-161, of Swarthmore, backed up strongly by Montco D.A. Risa Vetri Ferman.
“Parents trust that the state is doing everything to ensure that the school bus drivers hired to transport their children to and from school are qualified,” Lentz said.
Shapiro said he was pleased that PennDOT has responded to the legislators’ request so quickly.
These changes will be implemented no later than October.
This is quite a surprise for a state bureaucracy and Harrisburg honchos known mostly for their quintessential foot-dragging on public issues that need to be addressed ASAP, like banning the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
Revenue Loss
The federal government has warned Pennsylvania that proposed legislation to exempt farm vehicles from an upgrade of motor carrier safety regulations, if enacted, could cost the state $28 million in annual federal aid.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has notified PennDOT Secretary Allen Biehler that the proposed legislation would put the commonwealth in violation of federal motor carrier program requirements. The legislation seeks to exclude farm vehicles and drivers of those vehicles from the new safety rules.
By meeting the March 31 compliance deadline, Pennsylvania avoids federal penalties, including the loss of about $6 million in federal funds that support State Police Motor Carrier Enforcement.
“These funds are critical for continuation of our safety enforcement program,” said State Police Commissioner Col. Frank E. Pawlowski.
“Loss of this program poses a significant safety hazard for all drivers and passengers,” he said.
The most significant changes in the updated state rules affect truck-trailer combinations exceeding 17,000 pounds. The new rules do not allow drivers under 18 to drive such combinations on public roads. The rules do not apply to farm tractors.
Traffic Delays
Radnor – Goshen Road, road work costing $1.3 million, closed/detoured 24 hours daily between Darby-Paoli Road and Hunt Road for roadway reconstruction and realignment to remove a sharp curve through Aug. 21. Work began March 1. Goshen Road will be detoured over Darby-Paoli Road, Bryn Mawr Avenue, Route 3, Route 252 and Goshen Road.
Radnor – Radnor-Chester Road, Aqua utility installation, closed/detoured between Lancaster Avenue and Conestoga Road 9 a.m.-3 p.m. starting Monday through June 29.
Concord – Baltimore Pike, bridge replacement with lane restrictions on bridge over Chester Creek 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays through June 2011. Work began September 2009.
Ridley Township -- Route 13, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Morton Avenue and Acres Drive 9 a.m.-3 p.m. April 5-16.
U.S. Route 1 (Baltimore Pike) – Middletown and Chester Township, bridge replacement between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011; work began October 2009.
Baltimore Pike (U.S. Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12.
Road Watch appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.