Road Runner knows Bert Shetler drives on a lot of local streets as a delivery driver. He said he started using South Alvernon Way again after the Palo Verde overpass construction ended. At East 22nd Street and South Alvernon Way, Shetler said he sees a lot of confused drivers.
"Northbound, in the afternoon, everything flows along nicely, until you hit 22nd Street. Suddenly, the left lane becomes the LEFT TURN LANE, with almost no warning. It didn't take too many days for me to figure this out, but every day I witness the uninitiated slam on their brakes and make a panic lane change," he wrote.
Because he assumed the lane change was due to the overpass construction, he was wondering why the left lane still becomes the left turn lane.
The Alvernon Way-22nd Street intersection had nothing to do with the overpass, said Michael Graham, spokesman for the Tucson Department of Transportation.
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The intersection was rebuilt and widened about three years ago, he said. That project added a right-turn lane and two left-turn lanes, but because of a pole at the southeast corner of the intersection, traffic couldn't be moved farther to the right, he said.
The traffic change is marked with arrows painted on the pavement, signs that advise northbound traffic to merge right and a "left lane must turn left" sign, to warn drivers before they must make a lane change, Graham said.
Good news, bad news
For the fourth week in a row, gas prices in Tucson and statewide dropped last week, according to AAA-Arizona.
Last week, Tucson drivers were paying the least in the state, at an average price of $2.84 a gallon for regular unleaded, an AAA-Arizona news release stated. Nationwide, drivers paid about $2.90 a gallon.
Now for the letdown: Even though our prices are below the national average, a year ago Tucsonans were paying $2.20 a gallon for regular unleaded. Remember when that sounded like a lot?
RoadQ
Question: The heavily patched stretch of South Melpomene Way between East Calle Linda Vista and East 22nd Street is in need of repaving, said Jennifer Aviles, an East Side resident.
She says the road is "more patch than pavement," and the patches and potholes get worse each time it rains.
Answer: Melpomene between East Calle Catalina and East 22nd Street is scheduled for repaving in 2007. The area was recently crack-sealed to preserve the road until the repaving occurs, said Annabelle Quihuis, spokeswoman for the Pima County Department of Transportation.
