Turnpike troubles
It isn't every day you see fathers letting their toddlers play in the middle of turnpike lanes. Or strangers seated on a towel on the shoulder, tossing cards between them in an impromptu game to pass the time. Or friends playing Frisbee on the side of the road.
As I returned from a weekend of camping with two friends early Sunday evening, we screeched to a stop on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, just east of the Somerset interchange. For nearly three hours, that's where we stayed.
We had magazines, snacks and had just used the bathroom, so we managed OK. But I felt
for the mothers with tiny babies and antsy toddlers, and the guy who was on the last leg of a 14-plus-hour drive from Wisconsin to Harrisburg.
Here's a link to a story aboutwhat happened. Doesn't this remind you of the winter storm that stranded miles of motorists this winter? I wonder if anyone in state government has come up with a plan for how to handle such incidents?
As we sat there, most of the people simply wanted to know what to expect, what to do. Yet nobody came through to see if we were OK or give us an update. I thought the incident this winter would have prompted some changes in how such incidents are handled. But not even the turnpike's own Web site had up-to-date information for those folks able to call friends or family to check the Internet.
What could be done to avoid repeats of this type of thing?
Steve Klinedinst · July 28, 2008 2:43 PM
It is never on the way to the particular event or trip that i hit roadblocks, it always appears to be when i am coming home from a long drive and just anxious to get home. That is interesting that they still have no resolution to incidents such as this, but alas it is the government so that pretty much will probably keep happening until they get fed up with it. I like your blogs though