How bad is congestion? It’s so bad, even the Washington State Patrol is taking up the issue — complete with its catch-phrases and acronyms that stretch the limits of the English language.
If you can remember “Steer it, Clear it” and “Know Ways to Go,” then you’ll have a handle on the key goals of Operation RODE (if not its meaning, which is “reduce our drive time every day”).
“The goal of this project is to reduce people’s commute time by 5 minutes per commute, so 10 minutes per day,” Trooper Mark Francis said. “That doesn’t sound like a lot,” he said. But do the math. In one year, “that’s 42 hours people will save.”
OK, I’m listening.
Troopers have two easy objectives for drivers interested in helping Puget Sound commuters achieve this goal, summed by those catch phrases.
‘Steer it, Clear it’
If you’re in a collision, make sure no one’s hurt. Then, if the cars are still in driving condition, “steer it” and “clear it” off the roadway.
Take those dented fenders to the next exit — even if it’s a mile off — park at a gas station or something, and then trade information and call police to investigate, Francis said.
Yes, that means ignoring the what-if scenario you’ve burned into your brain since driver’s ed 30 years ago and largely skipping the whole “pull to the side of the road” shoulder business. (A state trooper just told you to do this — so take a deep breath, it’s OK.)
Why? Even minor fender-benders elicit that looky-loo mentality. Passing drivers pause to check out the scene, forcing those behind them to slow down as well.
“You get that slinky effect,” Francis said.
Staying on the shoulder of a busy interstate when you don’t have to is also unsafe, he added.
‘Know Ways to Go’
The other main point is to “know ways to go” that aren’t on the main commute route.
Take time over the weekend or during some down time to map out three or four alternate routes to work and home, Francis said. Then, before you leave, check traffic maps online and see which may be the best route.
“You might have stoplights … but you’re saving yourself 20 minutes,” Francis said.
There are other tips, too.
Be patient at merge points, in particular. Let people in, and don’t swerve to your own exit at the last minute, he said.
“Small decisions get compounded by the hundreds of other people who do the same thing,” Francis said.
All in this together
This is great stuff, really. But why the Washington State Patrol?
For one thing, troopers often have to deal with the aftermath of these decisions — pile-ups for minor collisions, road rage incidents sparked by lack of patience, and the like.
But it’s more than that, Francis said.
“All of us are in the same boat together. Even me in a patrol car, I’m effected by congestion,” he said.
“So we’ll continue to do our thing. We’ll continue to push cars out of the way and arrest drunk drivers,” he said. “But we can help educate the public and change driver behavior to have an effect on congestion. These are things we can do immediately to have an effect on our drive times.”
The program is on a one-year timeline. Troopers plan to check back on commute times in March 2016 to see just how well their messages got across.
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