04/23/2007: "More Pavement…Not A Good Idea"

The Council has been discussing whether or not the design standards for San Juan County roads should be changed by adding another 4 to 6 feet of pavement to provide shoulders for bike riders. How times have changed. A dozen years ago we fought hard to maintain a “country road” standard in the islands. Citizens then felt that a more modest road tended to slow traffic speeds and preserve the rural quality of the islands.

To take things one step further, San Juan County is one of the few places -outside rural places in the Northeast- that has embraced the concept of “scenic roads.” Westside road on San Juan and Rosario Road and the road through Moran State Park are current examples. The last time this issue came up, there was a good natured, by strongly felt, debate between Public Works, that preferred the mainland “flat wide and straight” design, and the County Commissioners and citizens who preferred the more quaint and pokey country roads that they felt better matched the islands ambiance and life style. I remember calling around to Vermont and Maine to get copies of their scenic roads programs so we could include them in our own design discussions.

There are several problems for the wide flat and straight designs for San Juan County. The first is that many of the County’s roads do not have the right of way to accomplish the additional pavement. Buying right of way is very expensive and often confrontational when property owners do not want the bigger road in their front yard. The County currently diverts so much of the road taxes they collect to other County endeavors there is hardly enough left to maintain the roads as they are, much less spending hundreds of thousands to purchase additional road width.

Along with the added cost comes reduced safety. Drivers tend to go faster on wide, flat and straight roads. It is human nature to drive at the speed that seems safe. However, when something does go wrong, the higher speeds often mean far more serious accidents.

People who ride bikes would like more space between themselves and passing traffic. I understand, but in terms of safety, most, if not all of the accidents involving bikes are result from falls. I do not recall any serious car/automobile events. Drivers make jokes about bike riders, and sometimes get frustrated waiting to get around them on the road, but all it all, it seems to sort itself out.

One refinement that could be made to our local road design standards is to provide for wider shoulders on the uphill climbs where bikes are especially slow moving. The limited sight distance for drivers as they approach the crest of a hill while trying to get around bike riders can be dangerous for drivers and bike riders alike. More space for cars and bikes on hills would be a good thing.

I hope the Council and Public Works do not get too carried away. I think most islanders prefer our country roads, to the mainland-style alternative.

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(Mr. Evans submitted the following addendum to the above column -Ed)

In rereading the piece that I wrote for the Guardian regarding the discussion on the Council about wider roads, it is clear that I should have originally referenced the accident on San Juan Island that took the life of Ryan LoBue three years ago. Ryan died after an automobile driven by Ms. Giovanni Drew struck the motorized bike Ryan was riding on the uphill climb on Bailer Hill Road. It was a tragedy for everyone connected with the accident.

Ms. Drew was convicted of vehicular homicide and felony hit and run and was sentenced to 34 months in prison. According to stories published at the time, there were four people in the car when the accident occurred and apparently all had been drinking. The Journal report indicates that Ms. Drew was tested for alcohol two hours after the accident and had a blood alcohol reading of .19. The legal limit is .08.

I do not know if a wider road would have prevented the accident that took Ryan’s life. I was a volunteer firefighter for quite a few years and had occasion to responded to accidents involving drunk drivers. There were incidents where, in my opinion, the width of the road would not have mattered.

I do think extra width on uphill portions of County roads is a good idea and, in this case, may have made a difference.

Please accept my apology to anyone who was offended that I did not reference the accident that took Ryan LoBue’s life.

John Evans