Five Narrow Lanes Cause No Uptick in Madison Highway 34 Accidents

Uncle! Uncle!

I raised a fuss when the city decided to restripe Highway 34 through Madison into four skinny driving lanes and a center left-turn lane. Madville Times readers gave the new stripes a hard thumbs-down when they changed the face of Madison traffic.

But initial traffic accident data suggest the five lanes are doing exactly what the state engineers promised: reducing accidents.

Between Jan. 1, 2010 and June 1, 2010, DPS officials logged one angle-intersection collision and one left-turn lane crash on SD-34 inside the city. In comparison, the city saw an annual average of about a dozen accidents from 2006 to 2008 that could have been influenced by the lack of a center-turn lane through town.

...The accident information for the first half of 2010 indicated that there were zero incidents of rear-end or sideswipe, same-direction collisions.

During 2008, DPS officials collected information on Madison SD-34 accidents that included two angle-intersection; four left-turn; three rear-end; and one sideswipe, same direction collisions. The total number of reported collision types was 10.

In 2007, they collected data on 10 angle-intersection; seven left-turn; one rear-end; and one sideswipe, same direction crashes for a total of 19.

During 2006, DPS staff members accumulated information on four angle-intersection; two left-turn; five rear-end; and two sideswipe, same-direction collisions for a total of 13 [Chuck Clement, "Accident Data Indicate Fewer SD-34 Collisions in Madison," Madison Daily Leader, 2010.12.09].

Now these data alone posit no causation yet, and state DOT engineer Scott Jansen would like to get a couple more years of post-restripe data to make some more reliable comparisons. But consider: current accident data show a nearly 7% increase in the number of crashes across South Dakota this year compared to last. Small towns may be rife with statistical anomalies, but so far, the five-lane restriping in Madison appears to be living up to its safety promise.

But I still think Jon Hunter had a better plan... and you'll still see me riding my bike right down the right-wheel track in that right lane. Make way!

Buzzed Madison Woman Rear-Ends Truck Waiting for Train

I guess it's Drunken Idiots Week here in Lake County. First my fair city makes headlines with a volunteer fireman getting a DUI at the wheel of the firetruck. Now on Wednesday on Highway 34, another driver hitting the hooch nearly drives herself and another motorist into a train:

At about 4:45 p.m., Allen D. Krogstad, 45, of Wentworth was westbound on the highway and had stopped his Ford F-150 pickup at the crossing for a passing train.

Rebecca S. Lamma, 50, of Madison was also westbound on SD-34 and came up to Krogstad's vehicle while it was stopped.

Both drivers were alone in the vehicles.

Before she could come to a full stop, Lamma's Chevrolet Impala struck the pickup in the rear at an estimated 35 mph.

Krogstad was sent to Madison Community Hospital with reported neck and back injuries.

Lamma had admitted to the consumption of alcohol and was tested at 0.061. She was cited for no driver's license, careless driving and following too closely [Chuck Clement, "Wentworth Man Injured in SD-34 Accident," Madison Daily Leader, 2010.09.09].

I can only imagine the fear the pickup driver felt: Holy crap: that lady's not stopping. The train's in front of me. I've got nowhere to go. Thank goodness for Ford engineering. I'm sure those neck and back injuries are no picnic, but that guy's lucky the coroner wasn't disentangling his neck and back from the undercarriage of the train.

As for the woman "following too closely"...

1. It's 4:45 p.m. It's not even happy hour yet. Why on earth are you drinking?
   
2. No driver's license? I know the computers were down and the line was long at the Lake County driver's license station Tuesday, but really, what are you doing on the road in the first place?
3. It's not like the guy in front of you romped on the brakes suddenly to avoid a turtle. That's a gosh-darn train in front of you. You weren't even drunk-drunk, just buzzed: so how do you not see a train that ought to be visible from a half-mile away?

Perhaps we should be thankful that Ms. Lamma has demonstrated the safety advantages of having only two lanes on Highway 34. Were the road a four-laner, Ms. Lamma might have been driving even faster and would have plowed Mr. Krogstad and herself right into that train. Or she might have been in that second lane and not had the convenience of using Mr. Krogstad's pickup as a speed bump to save her from the train.

The moral for my fellow Madisonians: put down the beer, the phone, or whatever the heck else is taking your eyes off the road.
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Update 09:33 CDT: Dang, maybe Madison should have applied for some of the $1.4 million Uncle Sam just gave 50 South Dakota communities for alcohol prevention.

Bypass Dusty!

No, this isn't a PUC post. But now that I have your attention....

Mostly recovered from a mowing mishap Sunday, I hit the road with the Madville Times mobile unit this noon. Coming toward town, I saw what looked like a dust storm... which made no sense, since there's no wind to whip up the dust. What the...

cough cough cough!

Ah, of course. Two days before the Steam Threshing Jamboree brings thousands of Cockshutt aficionados to Prairie Village, someone decides it's a good idea to lay fresh gravel on the Highway 34 bypass all along the south edge of Madison. Makes perfect sense: you lay gravel when you're expecting more cars to drive through and help you grind the rock into the road, right?

Cars and trucks kick up dust on the Highway 34 bypass
on the southwest edge of Madison.
(Note Madville Times mobile unit parked by stop sign.)

Now folks coming to Prairie Village are used to a little dust. But nobody likes rock chips in the windshield. So if you're coming to Madison this weekend and you're not hauling a big camper or trailer load of tractors, you might want to bypass the bypass and stay on the main 34 route through town. Besides, that route's more fun—you can stop at Dairy Queen and get some ice cream!

Man Rolls Truck on Highway 34, Walks Away with Scratches

Paramedics arrive at scene of vehicle rollover at
Highway 34–Territorial Road intersection,
Lake County, SD, 2010.08.24 ~10:30 CDT

Whew—that was close! As we Heidelbergers headed to town this morning, we saw a tan car in the turning lane on Highway 34, west of Prairie Village, that leads to Territorial Road and the country club. The car appeared ready to turn south, off the highway, but then appeared to move back into the westbound driving lane.

Behind that car, an orange and white pickup truck was westbound. Good thing he wasn't on his cell phone. The driver saw the car coming back into the main lane, slammed on the brakes and swerved north. Brakes and tires smoked, leaving tracks on the pavement. The truck missed the car. It hit the north curb several meters down from the Moonlite Inn's west entrance, went in the ditch, caught the dirt, and flipped and rolled sideways.

The cab got crunched a little. Windshield and back window popped out. The fabric cover on the bed tore off and tools and such spilled out of the back. The driver of the truck, the only man inside, opened the door and walked away with scratches. (Your assessments of classic Chevy engineering are welcome.)

Lake County law enforcement and paramedics tend to
rollover victim (seated in police cruiser). Driver of other
vehicle and grandson (right) wait to speak to officer.

This accident happened on the big highway curve right by Prairie Village. The highway will busy this weekend with everyone coming for the steam threshing jamboree. Come to Madison, have loads of fun, spend loads of money, but please, watch where the heck you're driving!
---------------
Update 2010.08.25: MDL publishes the names of those involved: Dean McCool was driving the truck; Judy Conrad was driving the car in front. MDL omits the key detail that Conrad's car was straddling the turning lane and the driving lane.

Four Lane Highways and Darwinian Selection

Bob Mercer likely loses some Madison friends with his suggestion that the South Dakota Department of Transportation ought to make U.S. Highway 12 a four-laner west of Aberdeen to Ipswich. Mercer notes another four-laner anywhere, not just the lonely 20 more miles to Ipswich, is the last thing the state can afford right now, but...

...each time I drive on U.S. 12 between Ipswich and Aberdeen, I become more convinced that expanding to a four-lane highway might make sense from a traffic safety standpoint. The area has seen more and more agriculture development including ethanol production, which has seemed to significantly increase semi-truck traffic. Whether or not the traffic numbers support such a project, I don’t know. But I do know that the combination of grain trucks, which seem to be driven safely on a consistent basis, and the impatience of many other motorists frequently isn’t a smooth mix, especially during sunrise and sunset hours [Bob Mercer, "A Four-Lane West of Aberdeen?," Pure Pierre Politics, 2010.03.31].

That mad rustling sound you hear is John Goeman digging out his flyer with the traffic numbers explaining that there's no chance that Highway 12 should qualify for more lanes ahead of Highway 34. The traffic numbers on four-lane Highway 12 east of Aberdeen are already 40% lower than traffic on two-lane Highway 34 between Madison and I-29. I'll speculate wildly that there's probably even less traffic west of Aberdeen.

But note Mercer's mention of driver impatience. Does he really want us all to spend tax dollars because some drivers can't behave like civilized human beings? Why should I have to pay more taxes because the SUV meathead on his cell phone next to me can't show the same good sense Nick Nemec does and ease up on the gas pedal? (Conservatives, I smell a campaign issue here!)

What I've said previously about safety concerns on Highway 34 may apply similarly to the road to Ipswich: we might solve the problem much more cheaply by adding a few turning lanes and telling people to slow the heck down.

But maybe I've got it wrong. Maybe we shouldn't spend money to add lanes or change speed limits on either highway. Maybe we should leave those roads exactly the way they are... and let Darwinian selection weed out the impatient drivers. Let a few leadfeet highball right up the back end of a grain truck by the ethanol plant, clear out the worst drivers, leave more room for the rest of us. Any takers?

SHS Earmarks $357M; Madison Gets $7.5M Hwy 34 Shout-Out

Last month, Taxpayers for Common Sense reported that South Dakota received $148 million in federal earmarks, thanks largely to the bipartisan efforts of our Congressional delegation.

Yesterday, Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin announced she's put in for $357 million in earmarks in FY 2011. You can review the complete list on David Montgomery's super-cool spreadsheet (thank you, David!).

Notice this: On Tuesday, word gets out that Madison native Dr. Kevin Weiland is circulating petitions to challenge Herseth Sandlin for her House seat. Same day, SHS releases her earmark requests, the single largest of which for transportation is $7.5 million to begin expansion of Highway 34 between Madison and I-29, a four-lane-ification project locals have been clamoring for. Coincidence?

Madison Backs Hwy 34 Request with Irony and Bull

On tap for the Madison City Commission tonight: an agenda drenched in irony, if not outright bunk.

Specifically, the City will approve yet another letter of support for the four-lane-ification of Highway 34 from Madison to I-29. "Of course our major concern is safety," writes Mayor Gene Hexom. Safety, indeed, because there are all those trucks that the rest of us just can't slow down for.

Mayor Hexom also embraces Obamanomics to make the case that the state should pour us some more concrete:

According to the Obama Administration, for every $1 million spent on capital improvements, approximately 30 jobs are created. We should feel the effect of 720 jobs created.

Once again, Madison's Republicans love the stimulus package... when it justifies their claims for pork.

And in the howler of the month, Mayor Hexom claims we've almost succeeded in our Forward Madison job creation goals:

In the past 36 months, Madison has created nearly 400 new jobs. Although the recession has slowed this rapid growth, the future looks extremely positive for Madison.

WHAT?!?! In the 36 months since the Forward Madison program announced its goal of creating 400 new jobs over five years, Madison has lost jobs. As of December 2009, there are 420 fewer jobs in Lake County than there were when Forward Madison started. Fewer.

Mayor Hexom, check the negative signs on the LAIC's spreadsheets.

Top Ten Stories of 2010: A Madville Times Wishlist (Part I)

Senator Snowe doesn't want to dwell on history, so why not look ahead with hope and aspiration? Here are the top ten stories of 2010. Don't confuse these headlines with predictions—in three previous tries, I have yet to pick a winner... although that's never stopped me before! These are just the ten best stories I hope I'll get to report on the Madville Times in the bright, bouncy new year.

1

Highway 34 Four-Lane Campaign Buys Masons' Building: "Build it and they will come," said campaign organizer John Goeman of Four for the Future members' decision to buy the Madison landmark. "We're sick of begging for federal money to build more road to Madison. We're going build something to give people a reason to come to Madison." Goeman and his colleagues have formed a non-profit corporation and hired local carpenters and artists to turn the old Masonic temple into a cooperative coffee house, gallery, meeting hall, and movie theater.

2

TSA Officers Work Naked: "I wasn't trying to start a revolution," said Chicago airport security agent Ralph Jablonski. "I just tell this lady to step into the body scanner, and she says, 'You show me yours and I'll show you mine.' So I says o.k., I drop my pants, and the lady steps right into the scanner, no questions asked. Pretty soon everybody in the airport's droppin' their drawers." Jablonski's initiative was so effective at improving customer satisfaction and trust, President Obama soon mandated nudity for all TSA staff. This new government transparency has inspired passengers to fly naked and made security a breeze.

3

Fahrenwald Named MadChestRut Superintendent: Following the resignations of their superintendents, Madison and Chester school districts both realized they could get along without a superintendent. "We farmed out duties to the principals and business manager, and no one noticed a difference," said Madison board president Jay Niedert. Madison and Chester then pursued further cost savings by taking up an offer from the Rutland school district: the two school districts dissolved and merged with the Rutland School District. Rutland Superintendent Carl Fahrenwald will run the new district, which spans three-quarters of Lake County. Madison residents responded with cautious approval: "Maybe now we'll win some football games," said former coach Tom Milne.

4

Jason Bjorklund Places Third in County Commission Race: Local 9-12 Project activist Jason Bjorklund came within two votes of winning a Lake County Commission seat in the November 2 election. Bjorklund's third-place finish was the closest any Glenn Beck/Tea Party candidate came to actually winning elected office on any South Dakota ballot. "I love politics!" said Bjorklund, vowing to run again. "I just need to keep improving my public speaking skills. I also need to remember that real county politics are about fixing roads and hiring good cops, not banning the Federal Reserve and preaching Natural Law."

5

Heidepriem Names Munsterman Economic Development Czar: After a literally bruising gubernatorial race that saw primary season fistfights and independent challengers splintering the state Republican Party, Governor-Elect Scott Heidepriem announced the olive-branch appointment of his main challenger, Scott Munsterman, as state economic development czar. "Scott knows South Dakota's future depends on promoting growth through cooperation in our rural communities," said Heidepriem. "Plus, the economic portfolio will keep Scott away from his nutty fundagelical friends in the all-abortion-all-the-time crowd."

...read on: here's the second half of the Top Ten Stories of 2010!

Madison Leaders Confused on Keystone Pipeline

Evidently Madison hasn't noticed any boost in business from the Keystone pipeline.

An eager reader points out an odd line in an MDL story about the city's otherwise reasonable discussion about designating Madison's Highway 34 bypass as an actual bypass:

Commissioner Nick Abraham and Mayor Gene Hexom predicted that SD-34 would see heavier oversized-load traffic in the future when construction of the TransCanada Keystone oil pipeline starts. Hexom proposed havng a meeting among city, county and DOT officials and letting the parties find a solution [Chuck Clement, "City, County to Meet on Oversized Trucks, Bypass Use," Madison Daily Leader, 2009.11.10].

Um, Nick? Gene? Chuck? Haven't you fellas been paying attention? Work on the Keystone Pipeline was in full swing at the end of August.

And if you're thinking of Keystone XL, which will cross Highway 34 278 miles from here and plunk Pump Station 18 near where 34 turns to cross the Cheyenne River Valley, I'm thinking the truckers hauling more Indian steel and other pipeline gear will prefer I-90.

Poll: Readers Give Thumbs Down to Five Lanes on Hwy 34 in Madison

The results of the latest Madville Times poll shows we're not terribly impressed with the new paint job on Highway 34 through Madison. I asked readers, "How do you like the new 5-lane striping on Highway 34 in Madison?"

• Love it: 10 (12%)
• Hate it: 42 (51%)
• Mildly amused: 13 (16%)
• Mildly annoyed: 16 (19%)

Nothing like changing the status quo to rile up Madisonites. Strange thing is, after a full week, I have yet to use the new center turn lane.

Anyway, thanks for your input! New poll coming up!

Breaking News! Madison Highway 34 Gets Fifth Lane!

Time for some yellow-stripe journalism....

On our way in to El Vaquero last night, my wife asked me, "So when's the city going to restripe the highway?"

Your stimulus dollars hard at work

Answer: today!

On my way in to class today, I found the road crew hard at work grinding lines and laying new stripes to convert Madison's four-lane stretch of Highway 34 into a glorious five-laner, with a great golden center turning lane.

That's 3M tape, so you know it'll stick.

Also stimulating: the thought of jockeying for space with my bike in the newly narrowed lanes with trucks and other big-wheeled beasties trundling through Madison. Alas, there's no sign of the bike lanes that Jon Hunter and I thought would be wonderful (dare I say, Unexpected™?) additions to our infrastructure.

Shot from the saddle: Is this road big enough for the both of us?

Picture that pickup riding in my lane. Picture me, on two wheels, beside him, trying to avoid curb and mirror. With two feet shaved off each lane, I'll be staking my claim about three feet from the curb and urging drivers to pass well left. (I'm just glad I missed that semi hauling the wind turbine nacelle through town just a minute before this photo!)

View east into Madison, across from Westside Park

Travel Notes: I-90 Slow, Chamberlain Highway 50 Bridge Closed

I spent my Friday and Saturday at the Speech Communication Association of South Dakota annual convention. Fun was had by all... once they got there. 36 miles of I-90, from Mount Vernon to Kimball, is under destruction. Some of my Far-East River friends reported a half hour added to their travel times (farm implements may have been involved in the longer delays). I experienced no such troubles, however, taking in the sweeping vistas of Highway 34.

View east on Highway 34, just before the drop into Wessington Springs and the Jim River Valley.

New windmills on the Wessington Springs Ridge. Keep 'em coming!

Best route to Chamberlain from Madison: take 34 all the way to the Prairie Chicken (ahem), then head south to Chamberlain on rolling Highway 50.

I missed the I-90 work, but I did see some serious bridge reconstruction in Chamberlain. The Highway 50 bridge across the Missouri is closed for "rehabilitation." In other words, don't go there! The bridge closure quintupled my travel time from Main Street Chamberlain to the convention site at Cedar Shores.

The Chamberlain-Oacoma Truss Bridge, closed until the end of November, 2010. Says SDDOT: "Work will consist of removal of the existing bridge deck, removal of existing paint from the truss members, repairing or replacing rusted steel, repainting the truss, repair of concrete piers, and replacement of the bridge deck."

We will not cross that bridge when we come to it.

Construction promotes culture: Chamberlain residents and visitors may now more easily enjoy the work of local artists.

Abraham Bucks Chamber, Dissents on Hwy 34 Funding

Madison City Commissioner Nick Abraham shows a welcome glimmer of willingness to stand up to Madison's big money interests: at Monday's commission meeting, he cast the lone dissenting vote on a proposal to spend $125K of city tax dollars on widening Highway 34 east of town. No, Abraham didn't rebel against the Highway 34 Four for the Future campaign—that would probably get him run out of town. No, James River Equipment, one of the current industry darlings of the Chamber/LAIC crowd, is building a turning lane outside its new lot in the industrial park southeast of Madison. As if $190K in federal earmarks for curb and gutter isn't enough pork, James River asked the city for $125K to pay for the turning lane.

Note that this turning lane is on the portion of 34 east of town that already is a divided four lane. But I guess folks are in such a rush to get out of town that we just can't expect them to slow down a touch near the JRE entrance or take a moment to swing over into the left lane. Once again, Madison's Republicans choose big government spending over personal responsibility.

But not Commissioner Abraham:

Commissioner Nick Abraham pointed out that the new turn lane is located outside the Madison city limits, and the city has no direct responsibility toward paying for the project. Abraham added that the city won't have the $125,000 used for the turn lane project available for street construction projects within Madison. He said the reduced availability of stimulus funding could delay city street improvements [Chuck Clement, "City to Fund SD-34 Turn Lane," Madison Daily Leader, 2009.07.28].

What? Did someone say stimulus money?

The commissioners asked Chad Comes, city engineer, if the money needed for building the new turn lane could come from federal stimulus funding that Madison received earlier this year. The stipulations for receiving the federal economic stimulus money included directives to use the funding for construction projects that were active and "shovel-ready," not just under consideration.

Comes told the commissioner that transportation officials will probably perform the necessary financial transfers that would direct the $125,000 needed for the turn lane construction from Madison's stimulus funds [emphasis mine; Clement, 2009.07.28].

Necessary financial transfers—a.k.a., bookeeping tricks that would essentially allow us to cheat the stimulus rules. Clever.

James River Equipment's move a mile up the road for more visibility is costing us a lot of tax dollars. Given that JRE sits outside city limits, the city won't even get to recoup its investment in increased sales tax revenue.* Commissioner Abraham is to be commended for saying that, on this issue, the good capitalists at JRE should get their hand out of the public pocket and pay their own way.

*Correction! Elisa Sand sends me looking for a map, where I find JRE does appear to lie within the city limits. Looks like that turning lane could pay itself off... if James River can sell 6.25 million dollars worth of additional John Deere tractors and lawn mowers!
----------------------
Additional Reading:

• JRE wins exception to state rules on highway access.
• LAIC handouts are covering 60% of the cost of water, sewer, and electricity infrastructure in the industrial park. Too bad all new businesses and homes can't get a break like that on the hook-up fees they pay the city.
  

Herseth Sandlin Earmarks Four Lanes for Highway 34

Madison: We are all Democrats now!

KJAM reports that Representative Stephanie Herseth Sandlin has earmarked $1.1 million for rights of way and utility line relocation to pave the way for adding two lanes to Highway 34 between Madison and Interstate 29. In a continuing spirit of nonpartisanship (or is that wealth redistribution?), "Highway 34 Four the Future" committee member and known Republican John Goeman is "pleased."

I wonder what will happen when Senator John Thune and his fellow Republicans get hold of this earmark request. Will they portray Herseth Sandlin's earmark as just more Democratic pork and irresponsible Washington spending?

Or will Senator Thune review his campaign donor list (available at OpenSecrets.org):

Contributor	Occupation	Date	Amount	Recipient
APPELWICK, KAREN MADISON,SD 57042	HOUSEWIFE	8/27/04	$200	Thune, John (R)
BELATTI, RICHARD MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/18/04	$250	Thune, John (R)
BELATTI, RICHARD MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	9/3/04	$250	Thune, John (R)
BELATTI, RICHARD MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	5/26/04	$200	Thune, John (R)
BELOTTI, RICHARD G DR MADISON,SD 57042	DOCTOR	11/24/01	$250	Thune, John (R)
BERGAN, JUDSON J MADISON,SD 57042	OPTOMETRIST	11/5/01	$250	Thune, John (R)
BERGAN, JUDSON J MADISON,SD 57042	OPTOMETRIST	10/11/02	$200	Thune, John (R)
CULEY, DAN MADISON,SD 57042	FIRST MADISON BANK	7/1/96	$200	Thune, John (R)
GOEMAN, JO LYNN MADISON,SD 57042	KJAM RADIO	10/14/98	$500	Thune, John (R)
GOEMAN, JOHN MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	2/10/04	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
GOEMAN, JOLYNN MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	4/26/04	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
GROSS, JOHN MADISON,SD 57042	DAIRY GENETICS	8/21/02	$260	Thune, John (R)
GROSS, JOHN C MADISON,SD 57042	SELF/AGRICULTURE	9/4/07	$500	Thune, John (R)
GROSS, JOHN C MADISON,SD 57042	ANIMAL GENETICS	4/27/98	$250	Thune, John (R)
GROSS, JOHN C MADISON,SD 57042	ANIMAL GENETICS	3/2/98	$250	Thune, John (R)
GROSS, JOHN C. MR. MADISON,SD 57042	SELF	8/24/98	$200	Thune, John (R)
HEINEMEYER, JEFF MADISON,SD 57042	CITY OF MADISON	9/13/04	$300	Thune, John (R)
HEINEMEYER, JEFF MADISON,SD 57042	CITY OF MADISON	10/10/96	$200	Thune, John (R)
JOHNSON, JERRY G MADISON,SD 57042	B & G TRANSPORTATION/OWNER	5/31/07	$250	Thune, John (R)
JOHNSON, ORVILLE J MADISON,SD 57042	CONTRACTOR	9/30/02	$250	Thune, John (R)
KRINGEN, DALE E MR MADISON,SD 57042	SELF/BUSINESS OWNER	8/16/00	$500	Thune, John (R)
LOOMER, GEORGE MR MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/16/00	$200	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	11/28/01	$500	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	6/3/02	$250	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	11/6/01	$250	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L MR MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	3/31/00	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L MR MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	3/24/99	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
MC CAUGHEY, ROBERT L. MR. MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	6/19/98	$500	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	5/7/97	$500	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	7/15/04	$250	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	9/13/04	$200	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	5/4/98	$500	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED/RETIRED	12/28/05	$250	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED/RETIRED	1/12/08	$250	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/3/02	$250	Thune, John (R)
MCCAUGHEY, ROBERT L MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	7/27/96	$200	Thune, John (R)
PHILLIPS, MARGARET MADISON,SD 57042	HOMEMAKER	9/21/04	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, DE VONA MADISON,SD 57042	HOMEMAKER	8/24/98	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL	5/27/04	$2,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL	4/25/02	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL	11/21/01	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL	8/24/98	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO ALL-AMERICAN AUTO MALL	10/14/96	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL/OWNER	12/30/99	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO LEASING/OWNER	8/16/00	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO MOTORS	12/23/97	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, JERRY L MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL/OWNER	10/18/06	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, PAL L MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO MOTOR CO/RETAIL	10/18/06	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, PAT MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO MOTOR CO	3/10/04	$2,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, PAT MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO MOTOR CO	9/19/02	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
PROSTROLLO, PAT L MADISON,SD 57042	PROSTROLLO AUTO MALL/AUTO DEALER	8/16/00	$500	Thune, John (R)
SHAW, DANIEL F MADISON,SD 57042	CONSULTANT	12/5/01	$250	Thune, John (R)
SHAW, DANIEL F MADISON,SD 57042	SELF/AG CONSULTANT	2/25/08	$250	Thune, John (R)
SHAW, DANIEL F MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED/RETIRED	5/22/07	$200	Thune, John (R)
SHAW, DANIEL F MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	7/30/02	$200	Thune, John (R)
SUNDE, DOUGLAS MADISON,SD 57042	FARMER	9/3/04	$500	Thune, John (R)
SUNDE, DOUGLAS J MADISON,SD 57042	FARMER	8/16/02	$250	Thune, John (R)
SUNDE, JAMES S MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED/RETIRED	12/31/08	$500	Thune, John (R)
SUNDE, JIM MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	7/30/04	$500	Thune, John (R)
THOMPSON, STAN MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	4/20/98	$250	Thune, John (R)
WENK, MIMI MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/24/98	$400	Thune, John (R)
WENK, WILLIAM MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/24/04	$500	Thune, John (R)
WENK, WILLIAM B MADISON,SD 57042	WENK FOODS	8/21/96	$1,000	Thune, John (R)
WENK, WILLIAM B MADISON,SD 57042	RETIRED	8/28/02	$500	Thune, John (R)

$35,160. Spread out over a decade and a half, I suppose that's not much. But still....

What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall when Senator Thune asks senior advisor and Madison native Jon Lauck what he thinks of this earmark. If only Lauck were still blogging!

Stimulus Highway Money Coming to Lake County... for Stripes

The state Transportation Commission just released its first list of highway projects to spend the stimulus money. The 100-million-dollar list of shovel-ready projects is just over half of the $189 million allotted to South Dakota. There are some big replace and repave projects, some chip seal and overlay, lots of signs and fences...

...and for Lake County? Highway 34 gets money... for stripes. Item 28 lists $290,000 for restriping 45.7 miles of road in Davison, Gregory, Hutchinson, Lake, Miner, Union, and Yankton counties. (They better be bike lane stripes!)

Lake County receives no mention in any of the other 45 items on the list.

Highway 34 committee? If you want your four lanes to Colman, you fellas might want to get on the horn to Pierre about that remaining $89 million.

Love for Jon Hunter: Broadsheet Bulk and Bikes

For the first time in months, I picked up a dead-tree edition of that Sioux Falls paper this afternoon. I was surprised how small it felt. The font also looked strangely large, the way text in Scientific American did several years ago when they started dumbing down.

I realized just how much that Sioux Falls paper has shrunk when I picked up our own hefty local tome, the mighty Madison Daily Leader:

Look at that lovely local rag. Six columns across that front page, a full column wider than the big-city corporate sheet. Font a good point smaller, maybe more. And, at least on the MDL editions before me, no ads on the front page.

But it's not just size that has me all a-gush over my local newspaper. Thursday's print MDL carries yet another remarkably clear and specific editorial from our man Jon Hunter. His latest cri de coeur: bike lanes for Highway 34 through Madison. Yes, lanes, plural, one on each side of the road.

Hunter's reasoning: the city's preferred plan, squeezing a center turn lane between the existing four lanes, will result in traffic flowing as if there were only one lane in each direction. Drivers will find the five lanes "uncomfortably narrow" and won't pass each other (exactly what my wife experienced in town today as she dared not try squeezing the Focus past a cattle truck rolling through town on our main snow-narrowed drag).

Hunter's plan:

...if this pattern is inevitable, let's consider this bold idea: restripe the road as three¹ full lanes (one going in each direction and a center turning lane), then stripe a bicycle path near the curb in both directions.

Currently it is very dangerous to ride a bicycle on this section of SD-34, but it could be made much safer under this scenario. We wouldn't expect bicyclists to use it in the winter², but in summer months it may be well used, especially with the opening of the new waterpark this May on the west end of that stretch.

When empty, the bike path lane could be used as a right-turn lane, with passing traffic shifting slightly into the middle-turn lane to pass the right-turning car.

We ask the city commission and the state DOT to consider this idea as an equally-safe alternative which can also provide an additional service of helping bicycle traffic [Jon Hunter, "If SD-34 Will Be Restriped, Let's Try Something Bolder," Madison Daily Leader, 2009.01.08, p. 3].

Bolder indeed! A clear critique of city action, a specific alternative plan, and an unequivocal call to action—our man Hunter must be reading blogs! Now if we could just strike that editorial we....

It warms my heart to hear such an endorsement of two-wheeled travel from the Madison Daily Leader. I also take great pride in a bulky local broadsheet that will cover more of the floor when I work on my bike than a flimsy sheet of that shrinking Sioux Falls paper.

Two bike lanes for Highway 34—heck of an idea! I was going to rib Hunter over his ironic editorial on letters to the editor, but his bike land editorial is so gosh darn good, I'm giving the good publisher a pass. Happy weekend, Jon... and let's see some bike lanes!

------------------------------
¹Yes, those are Jon's italics. Such typographic flair!
²I am the Unexpected™. Biking Brady might visit, too!

Madison Highway 34: Keep Your Arms and Head Inside the Bus

Correction [2008.01.03]: As I review the Madison Daily Leader print edition for the week, I find a correction in Wednesday's paper. Evidently, the Leader misreported the current and proposed lane widths. Right now, the four lanes on Highway 34 through town are 12 feet wide. The state DoT proposal would restripe the road to create three middle lanes of 10 feet each and two outer lanes of 9 feet each. Apparently recognizing how cranky cyclists like me are at the prospect of going shoulder-to-side-mirror with SUVs, the Leader emphasizes that each outer lane has two additional feet of gutter. I hope the suggestion is not that the gutter is where cyclists belong. ;-)

The Madison City Commission and even Police Chief Chuck Pulford think narrowing the lanes on Highway 34 through town to accommodate a fifth lane down the center for left turns will be hunky-dory. A couple numbers:

• Proposed new lane width: eight feet (down from the current ten feet)
• Standard width of school bus: eight feet.

Narrower lanes mean increased safety? I'm still not convinced. If I'm biking home from class, and along come a school bus and a Suburban in each lane... well, it'll be a tight fit.

Five Lanes for Madison's 34? Wrong Lane, DOT....

Someone at Four for the Future is thinking, "Can't anyone in Pierre read a memo?"

Local boosters have been pushing to expand Highway 34 east of Madison from two to four lanes all the way to I-29. Now Scott Jansen from the South Dakota Department of Transportation has come through for us, saying that state officials want to make Highway 34 a five-lane road... through Madison.

Don't worry, DeLon (and fellow Blizzard lovers): SDDoT isn't planning to bulldoze Dairy Queen. The engineers just want to repaint 2^nd Street and Washington Avenue: erase the stripes, draw a fat yellow turning lane down the middle, and draw skinny little lanes on either side.

According to MDL's Chuck Clement, Jansen told the Madison City Commission Monday that SDDot came to Madison and Discovered the Unexpected™: 18 left-turn related accidents from 2004 to 2006.

Jansen says center turn lanes in other towns have reduced accidents 10% to 30%. Jansen says he also expects to get phone calls and complaints if the changes are made.

Gee, why wait that long?

• Scott Jansen, Mitchell Region Traffic Engineer: 605-995-8136
• Mitchell Region SDDoT Office: 605-995-8129

Squeeze five lanes into four? Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Anyone remember how narrow the lanes felt on 6^th Street in Brookings? Those of us who prefer to ride bicycle do. Cars come close enough as it is to us cyclists; we don't need those side mirrors coming any closer.

Engineer Jansen says narrower lanes won't be a problem, since newer cars are typically smaller. Engineer Jansen must not have noticed all the pickup trucks, trailers, tractors, and whatever giant SUVs may have rolled off Prostrollo's lot lately that can use all the room on Madison's streets that they can get.

Does Engineer Jansen remember what happened last time the state blessed us with a center turn lane? When the state redid Highway 34 (help me out here: was it 1991?), the engineers slapped a big turning lane right down the middle. Lake County drivers didn't know what the heck to do with it. It seemed like a waste of concrete to have that big center strip lying empty 99% of the time. Within a year, the state relaid the stripes (that's why the concrete seams run down the middle of the driving lanes west of town).

That change increased the West 34 from three lanes to four, but we had shoulder to spare out by Nicky's and the F&M. In town, we don't have that wiggle room. A center turn lane in town on 34 is just overkill. It will make driving through town more dangerous, not less, for motorists and cyclists alike. The only was a center turn lane would work is if we physically widened the highway... and I'm thinking my property-owning friends along 34 would have a few words to say about that.*

We don't need to rejigger Highway 34 in town. Neighbors, just start using your left blinker sooner, and keep your eyes peeled. Engineer Jansen, pick up your slide rule and your extra lane and take 'em out east of town, where the nice folks on Lake Madison want 'em.

*Besides, adding a lane would mean Dollar General would have to move its sign, and we can't have that.

Civil Discourse, Peons, Fear and Trembling

So I'm two steps from the supper table—heaping salad from the garden, spaghetti, homemade rolls, yum!—when the phone rings. I get it, and a woman asks, "Are you the one who writes all those letters to the editor about the Highway 34 project?"

All those letters? I think I sent one letter, an edited version of this blog post, to the Madison Daily Leader on the subject of expanding Highway 34. That letter ran in print in May 2007.

I mention that I write a lot and ask if the caller has read my website. She says she has nothing to do with computers. Let's not get too carried away with calling newspapers "legacy media": I still get a lot more comments around town about my occasional letters to the editor than I do my daily blog output. (Then again, folks who want to comment about my blog don't have to wait to bump into me at the grocery store.)

Anyway, the lady caller, who avoided naming herself until the very end of the call, said she agreed with my suggestion that we build more turning lanes on Highway 34 rather than making it a full four-laner all the way from Lake Madison to I-29. "We've got other roads into Madison," she said. She'd rather see us improve Highway 19 up from I-90, not with four lanes, but just decent shoulders where folks would have room to pull over (she's right: I've biked Highway 19, and there's not a lot of room between your wheels and the ditch).

The caller expressed disapproval of the various Highway 34 Four for the Future signs around town. She suggested I balance that message by writing another letter to the paper on this topic. I noted that I've already written on the topic, and that a letter from a different voice in the community might be more effective. "Ma'am, why don't you write that letter?"

"Oh, I don't want my name in the paper. I'm just a peon."

Peon? There's a word that doesn't pop into every phone conversation. I asked the woman who she thought I was. I'm not money; I'm just a local who say what he's thinking. I'm no different from you, I told the caller. What's stopping you from writing that letter?

"I'm intimidated by the folks with money."

Intimidated. I've heard people say it before, in person and online. Folks around here are afraid of the simple business of saying what they think. There's this strange idea that if we engage in simple civil discourse, if we take a firm public position on anything, the "folks with money" in Madison are going to come and take away our birthdays.

But seriously, what does the caller think would happen: she'd write a letter to the editor, and the Highway 34 boosters would come over and tear up her rosebushes?

The caller wouldn't pin her intimidation to any specific outcome, but despite my polite urgings, she wouldn't commit to writing that letter herself.

Looks like I still have work to do. I'll keep trying!