Congratulations to UDOT for creating the most dangerous road that I have ever ridden on. Highway 40, going through Strawberry. A few weeks ago I rode through and watched a couple on a motorcycle go down. That was due to the uneven layering of the road surface, and they way that UDOT directed traffic through it. Now the road is finished. And UDOT managed to create a surface that is not just slick, but also collects water and doesn’t allow it to run off. Sunday I rode through during a thunderstorm. It was absolutely scary. But I made it. I posted this on Facebook:
The hariest part of the ride was going past Strawberry with it’s newly refinished surface. Water doesn’t run off there. It collects. So to avoid hydroplaning, I threaded my tires in the track of a truck in front of me that was doing 75-80 MPH and I was going through where his tires splashed the water out, before the water came back in… if you know what I mean. It was either that, or go 40 MPH and risk getting run off the road. So it was dicey.
I point my finger at UDOT for totally crap engineering of the road.
I find it rather amazing that, we have the best-educated highway engineers in the world, the finest highway designers, the most knowledgeable and dedicated highway construction workers and the best and most advanced highway construction materials and equipment in the world — and we cannot turn out a roadway that rainwater will run off.
Stunning! Utterly stunning.
Many, many, years ago I new a female engineering student in Texas, she was fascinated by road construction and design. So in her final year of civil engineering she applied for a job with the Texas DOT when they recruited on campus. She reported that when she gave him the transcript of her records he said, “Oh my we hardly ever get anybody applying with grades this high.” It seems that because of pay and opportunity the bottom of the Civil Engineering class ends up in the state DOT. The rest go to private firms or at least the Feds.
“It seems that because of pay and opportunity the bottom of the Civil Engineering class ends up in the state DOT”
Don’t count out the city DPW’s either.