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Letter to the editor

Information sign is scary

Dr. Delay Navigating South Pinellas

By LORRIE LYKINS, Times Correspondent
Published September 9, 2007

Is it me, or does the sign erected by the DOT that hovers over the east side of U.S. 19 just north of the 38th Avenue N flyover look a little odd? It seems like a gargantuan version of the standard sign the DOT uses to relay traffic info to motorists with amber lights giving a kind of huge Lite-Brite effect. But this isn't a rollaway. It's hung from a mast arm that appears to be disproportionately enormous, and a bit menacing because it's tilted slightly down, giving one the worry it could tip over onto cars passing below.

We asked Kris Carson of the DOT about this and she said that the sign, which is the same size as others on U.S. 19 and State Road 60, is a Dynamic Message Sign installed as part of Pinellas County's Intelligent Transportation System project that runs on U.S. 19 from Haines/Bayshore to 54th Avenue N.

"The DMS is tilted down to the roadway to improve legibility of the sign when it is lit with LED which has a narrower cone of vision than standard light bulbs," Carson said.

Carson also said that the signs are a bit smaller than the ones on the interstate, but they still need to be large enough to post messages that can be read by motorists.

Park Boulevard at U.S. 19

Long signal times try patience of motorists

Apparently lots of folks break out their stopwatches when fuming over long light cycles.

The Doc has had an avalanche of cranky e-mails the past two weeks about the light cycle for eastbound vehicles on Park Boulevard at the U.S. 19 interchange.

Easily half a dozen readers noted in their e-mails and phone calls that the cycle took a full four minutes to finally turn green, leaving vehicles in the turn lane that feeds onto U.S. 19 N idling through three to four signal cycles.

At times traffic has been stacking up to the point that the intersection that's the entrance to the popular Shoppes at ParkSide on Park has been blocked.

JoAnn Fries wrote: "The traffic coming off Park Boulevard going north on U.S. 19 is continually backed up to the light at Applebee's. Then to make matters even worse there is a time where all lanes just sit and burn gas because the light is red in all directions. DOT or whoever is responsible for this mess should reset the timers back to the original times. Traffic moved quite smoothly there for years."

Ken Jacobs, manager of traffic signal operations for Pinellas County, said that construction and utility work in the area is probably what threw the signal's timing out of whack. It has been adjusted and traffic seems to be flowing more smoothly through the area.

Tyrone Square Mall

Why both uncontrolled,controlled mall access?

Regular Tyrone Square Mall shoppers undoubtedly have established routines in their choices of entrances and parking areas. The Doc almost always parks opposite the food court on the Macy's side of the mall.And entering and exiting the mall should be a no-brainer.

The traffic-signal-controlled entrances on the north and south sides of the complex are the safest and smartest options. Why choose an unprotected intersection, especially when traffic is heavy? And more to the point, reader Barry Dean wonders why the mall has an unprotected not to mention dangerous, entrance in such proximity to a signaled one. Dean wrote:

"I don't understand why the exit from Tyrone Mall to Tyrone Boulevard just north of 68th Street is needed. At least once a month there is a serious accident at this exit when cars are trying to cross four lanes of traffic on Tyrone Boulevard when they could use the 68th Street exit, which is regulated by a traffic light."

We passed Dean's comments on to the city's traffic department about the two nearly side-by-side entrances - one protected by a signal and one not. We'll let you know what we hear back.

Until next week, happy and safe motoring!

Please share your traffic concerns, comments and questions with Dr. Delay via e-mail at docdelay@yahoo.com.

[Last modified September 9, 2007, 01:47:54]