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State Representative Diane Loeffler
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4219
For more information contact: Joan Nichols 651-29X-XXXX
Column/LTE
Design for Driver Safety
Dear Editor,
Do it right over doing it fast. What does “right" mean? Safety of the new bridge is job number one. Use our dollars wisely. That’s what the public has consistently said to me from the stunned discussions at National Night Out events a few days after the collapse until now. As one of their representatives I say to Governor Pawlenty– Do it right. Put safety first and let us all see and understand what we’re buying.
In 1991 this area was declared our most treacherous of freeway and State Traffic Engineer Rich Lau said it was because of the “hump” on the bridge that prevents traffic from seeing problems ahead. It’s gotten worse since then as traffic coming over the hump more routinely confronts a sea of red lights from the back ups from the I94 and Washington exits. It appears the “hump” and poor sightlines will remain, but we’re not positive because in the administration’s process we don’t get to see the design until the contracts are signed.
As a regular user, I wasn’t surprised to learn that from 2002 to 2006 there were 1,591 crashes on 35W between Industrial Blvd and I94. They resulted in 6 deaths and up to 373 injuries. The personal tragedies, injuries, vehicle loss and hardship of the collapse victims have unfortunately been regularly thrust suddenly upon commuters for years. We need the final result to be a safer stretch of freeway.
Going from the expanded 10 lane bridge to the reduced lanes on either side will cause new problems in weaving traffic between special lanes and the main ones and the currently inadequate approaches and exits. The new capacity will solve some problems but also cause new bottlenecks and collision zones. But in a recent hearing Commissioner Malnau has said there’s no time to study those or work on safer approaches and exits. A sturdy new bridge with backups and unsafe traffic flow is not progress. We need to address those issues now, even if it requires state funding.
New federal bridge safety standards go into effect October 1. Is the rush to sign off a way to avoid those? Despite my asking 3 times, MNDOT has not said that they will require compliance with those new standards. In response to their silence, I’ve asked Congressman Oberstar to make compliance with those a requirement of the $195 million Congress is in the process of awarding.
It’s time for Governor Pawlenty to offer up some of the “transparency” he often champions: Assure us the new bridge safety requirements will be met and appoint an empowered safety oversight team to publicly address the bottlenecks and backups with authority to slow the project down, if needed, for the safety components to be thoroughly enough analyzed and addressed. He should direct his staff to respond to legitimate questions from the press and the public on what it is we’re buying and what requirements will apply to contractors rushing to get a $27 million bonus for early completion.
The "pay for performance" I'd like to see is not paid for getting it done early, but instead paid on reduced lives lost, reduced collisions, and reduced stalls in traffic in the years after it's opened.
I’ve learned to trust the common sense smarts of the people. They say, “Do it right with public safety as our highest priority. Use our dollars wisely.” Governor, are you listening?
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