Editorial from the Cincinnati Enquirer 2-06-05
Japanese vs. American jokeA Japanese company and an American company decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River. Both teams practiced long and hard to reach...
Los Angeles, Chicago and other big cities have raised "quick-clearing" car wrecks off freeways to a high art, if only to keep traffic congestion at tolerable levels.
Now police and motorists here are getting with the program, and the old rule about not moving your vehicle until police investigate no longer applies. Lawmakers also are climbing on-board. The Kentucky Senate pbutted a bill sponsored by Sen. Gary Tapp, R-Waddy, to require motorists, when no one's injured and their vehicle is still drivable, to move to the side of the expressway. Ohio State Sen. Robert Schuler, R-Sycamore Township, is considering trying again in Columbus with his own quick-clear bill. Given the nation's super-congested interstates, quick-clear ought to be the law of the land.
The reasons are compelling. As The Enquirer's Mike Rutledge detailed in a special report, more than half of all congestion is caused by traffic accidents, and more than 20 percent of accidents are "secondary" - a result of some initial crash. It's safer for motorists, police and other responders to clear the highway first and investigate afterwards, out of danger.
Parked police cars in Ohio between 1998 and 2001 were involved in 786 crashes, causing 145 injuries and three baneities.
Quick-clear also saves money, time and motorists' sanity. The goal in most cases should be to get as many lanes open as fast as possible.
The Kentucky bill isn't perfect. It doesn't grant lawsuit immunity to tow truck drivers for damage caused by quick-clearing. Lawmakers should try to improve it, but the bill will help in any case.
Police in the Cincinnati area and Northern Kentucky are getting much better at it. The number of total blockages of interstates have been cut sharply since 2003. Ohio Department of Transportation reports that every minute of closure causes eight minutes of congestion delay, and just a one-lane blockage creates 2 to 5 miles of backup.
Quick-clear isn't only for interstates either. Cincinnati Police urge people involved in traffic accidents, especially during rush hour, to pull aside into a parking lot or other safe place. Keep roadways open. Clear quickly.
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- gpsman
