Gas main break in Snellville causes traffic snarls

Photo via WSB-TV

Snellville Ga. - A break of a natural gas line during rush hour this morning caused all lanes to be closed at the very busy intersection of US-78/Main Street and Rockdale Circle/Hwy 84 (Grayson Parkway) in Snellville.

Snellville road closures

A couple Snellville road closures -

Pate Road at Temple Johnson and Ridgedale Drive from Pinehurst Road to Driftwood Pl will have intermittent lane closures between 9 am and 4 pm through the month of August.   Pate at Temple Johnson Road will have intersection improvements, and Ridgedale/Pinehurst/Driftwood will have roadway improvements.

For more information, contact the Georgia Department of Transportation (District Communications Office) at 770-718-3924 or visit www.GeorgiaNavigator.com

What's going on at North Road and Pinehurst?

If you've been wondering why all the huge drain pipes are in yards on North Road, Ridgedale, and Pinehurst in Snellville, and would like to know what's going on, the answer is in this November 20, 2009 press release:

An upgrade of the intersection of North Road and Pinehurst Road will add left and right turn lanes to all approaches, a new traffic signal and pedestrian facilities. This project is expected to take approximately nine months to complete.

A section of Ridgedale west of Pinehurst Road will also be improved, providing a better curvature to the roadway, new roadside shoulders and left and right turn lanes at its intersection with Little Lisa Lane. This work will take approximately six months to complete.

Traffic studies in 2006 and 2007 showed that as many as 14,000 vehicles passed through the intersection at Pinehurst and North Road daily. That number is certainly higher now. No doubt it will be very inconvenient to drive through that area over the next months, but in the end, I know it will be worth it to get all those cars moving through there more easily.

(A big THANK YOU to Jon Richards of http://lawrencevilleweather.com/ for helping me locate the press release information)

Please don't text and drive

I don't think any kind of cellphone use while driving is acceptable. Just pull over somewhere and talk. But texting is even worse! I've counted people driving eastward through the US78/Wisteria/Skyland Drive intersection, and usually, out of 10 drivers, about 7 are talking on their cellphone.

A couple days ago, a young driver was behind me at the light, talking on her cellphone and eating. All I could do is pray, "Please Lord, let her pay attention when the light turns green!" I can be a defensive driver in most situations, but when they're behind you, sometimes there isn't a thing you can do. I'm glad to be older and have good insurance though!

It's interesting that when surveyed, most people think its okay for them to use a cell phone while driving, because they think they are so good they can do both...but the same people don't want other people to use cell phone and drive.

So here's a guy from Snellville who totaled his car because he was texting. He's lucky he didn't total himself or take someone's life. He's sorry he hit a car that had the engine in the back, so by tail ending the other driver, it caused $25,000 damage. But someone's life is worth more than $25K, it's priceless.

That's a very expensive text message, but the lesson is invaluable.

What do you think should be done about texting and driving? Should it be left up to the driver, or should we have laws about it? Some people think the law wouldn't do any good in deterring people from this behavior, it would be an after-the-fact punishment. What do you think?

Texting, driving not compatible
Red and Black
Omar Lewis, a junior from Snellville, totaled his car a few months ago. "I was driving and texting, going like 45 miles per hour," he said. ...

Links:
How do I get a GA driver's license?
If you steal a cell phone, set it to vibrate
Pilots say T-Mobile cell phone tower not safe

US78 reversible lane system in the news

US 78 reversible lanes ending Monday
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
124 in Snellville. They will take out the overhead reversible lane signage and restripe the road with a center turning lane, three westbound lanes and two ...

DOT to drop reversible lane on US 78
WMBF - Myrtle Beach,SC,USA
AP - July 11, 2009 4:04 AM ET SNELLVILLE, Ga. (AP) - The state Department of Transportation plans to remove the last section of reversible lanes on US 78 ...

Power Outage in Snellville & People Driving Into Ditches

Snellville Police, Fire/EMS, and emergency dispatchers certainly had their hands full this morning.

I was at Snellville United Methodist Church when the power went out, and by the time I was out of the building, I saw several EMS and Fire vehicles, so I knew something was going on. By the time I got home, a helicopter was hovering around, so that got me curious enough to listen to the scanner feed of the Snellville Police that's available on ScanGwinnett.com

If you listen to the communication feeds and make some notes like I did, you will see what a great job all our emergency personnel do in Snellville! They can deal with anything from the mundane to the insane in minutes. It's amazing to me how calm they can remain.

So here's what I found out from the Police Scanner feed, along with some of my personal comments.

A little after 10:30 am, a power grid went down, causing most of the center of Snellville to lose power. Power failure of the traffic signals was a huge problem. Power was out from Henry Clower Blvd, areas all around Scenic Hwy/124 in Snellville up to Dogwood Road. Police were kept busy dealing with accidents and directing traffic.

The intersection of Hwy 78 and Hwy 124 is difficult even when everything's working well, but with the lights out, it was mass confusion because drivers fail to recognize that intersection as a 4-way stop if the lights are non-functional. If you read this blog regularly, you'll know that one of my pet peeves is that people don't know what to do at a 4-way stop...and those are the non-electric 4 way stops! If you take a 4-way stop that usually has traffic signals, and it doesn't have the signals due to power outtage, watch out, something BAD is going to happen! There was an accident between a moving van and a minivan at 78 and Hwy 124.

Power was restored by 11:30 am, but signals at Hwy 124 and the Snellville Pavilion shopping center needed a key to reset the light, which was flashing yellow. The light wanted to be ornery, and it wouldn't reset, so they had to call out Snellville Traffic Engineers to fix it.

All this is going on, a black Chevy Suburban was stolen, or it was broken into, in front of the Old Navy store on Hwy 124. I'm not sure which it was, I could only hear that it was "theft."

But that was not enough. A 2000 Silver Mercury vehicle was partially in a ditch on Skyland Drive near Street DeVille. The car was registered to someone with a Loganville/Grayson address. Can you believe that people make a special trip into Snellville just to drive into our ditches?!? Do they not have ditches in Loganville or Grayson? They really should get their own ditches. It's just really rude to come here and use our ditches. That's all I'm going to say about that. ;-)

So have a better day than the Snellville Police had! I still don't know why the power grid failed.

Why Weren't Snellville Police Directing Traffic?

Gwinnett Buzz blogger:

"I would love to know why two Snellville police officers were having what appeared to be a casual conversation tonight in the parking lot of the QuikTrip while traffic hesitantly negotiated the intersection of US 78 and Grayson Parkway with a non-functioning traffic light? Perhaps there was a perfectly valid reason they were not directing traffic....continue to Gwinnett Buzz...
(UPDATE, as of June 17, the blog post has been removed)

(this is me again...) Oh boy. You know you are in trouble when many people in a Snellville who can't handle a small 4-way stop intersection encounter a busy intersection with a non-working light! It's a good question though, why they weren't directing traffic. Perhaps another officer was coming to do that...I hope! Several street lights along US78/Main Street were out due to the weather yesterday (I guess)

This reminds me, though. The intersection in Snellville to avoid right now is Pharrs and North. Construction crews are digging and the workman is out there with his "Slow" sign. This isn't usually an issue, except that the guy with the sign directs traffic, then on a whim, he'll stop directing traffic, leaving everyone in a confused mess. If you're going to direct traffic, then direct it. You can't just start and stop.

Traffic Light a'Comin to North Rd and Pinehurst

Thank you, Jesus!...I don't know how the people who live near that intersection can stand all the pollution each day. This is like an answer to prayer for them, I'm sure...but the construction won't happen until 2009. AJC's Snellville Blog

Today's Snellville News

'Rough Thursday' seen for US 78
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
Now Snellville's main artery to metro Atlanta is ready
for the hum of heavy machinery. Construction crews
will officially start work overnight Wednesday to ..."

Add a 'Rough Friday', a Rough Monday, a Rough Tuesday, a Rough Wednesday. Rinse and repeat until you want to throw a tantrum in the middle of US78. Primal scream. Infinity.

New London Theatre presents “Arsenic & Old Lace”
Duluth Weekly - Duluth,GA,USA
SNELLVILLE, GA (February 11, 2008) - New London
Theatre will hold auditions on January 28th and 29th to
cast the roles in their upcoming production of ...

How Gwinnett cities celebrate Arbor Day
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
It joins Berkeley Lake, Duluth, Norcross, Suwanee and
Snellville. Nationally, Arbor Day is celebrated on the last
Friday in April, but many Southern states ...

Norris Named ACC Pitcher Of The Week
CSTV.com - New York,NY,USA
The Snellville, Ga. native threw a pair of complete games
in the tournament and struck out eight in each contest. Norris,
a junior from Snellville, Ga., ...

Snellville GA News Links

Road improvements and creative driving
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
The shout-out goes to the city of Snellville
and Gwinnett County for — just last month —
making North Road a southbound, one-way corridor
from Wisteria Road ...

Susan Gast thinks the new one way is a great thing.
I'm still not crazy about it but I do see some benefit.

Driver killed in Gwinnett wreck
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
The crash occurred about 9:30 pm on Lenora Church Road
near Meadow Point Drive in Snellville, Gwinnett police
Cpl. Illana Spellman said. ...

South Carolina signs four from Georgia
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
Kenneth Miles, a running back from Snellville
(Brookwood), who had over 2400 yards as a senior.
Ronald Byrd, a defensive end from Hogansville (Callaway), ...

LSU class begins with Georgia signees
Shreveport Times - Shreveport,LA,USA
Some 20 minutes later, defensive lineman
Cordian Hagans (6-5, 300) of Snellville, Ga., and
Northview High School sent signed papers to LSU. Miss a day. ...

Get on a roll with metro Atlanta's bowling scene
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
"It's still an adjustment" said Barton, who lives in Snellville.
"But my mind is focused on bowling a 300 game."
When Barton lost his lower left leg to...

Accident Snellville US78 near Summit Chase and South Crestview

Well, after posting to the blog yesterday about driving safety, there was a really bad accident on US78 near Summit Chase this morning. What, not everybody is reading this blog?!? Just kidding....but seriously, I know there were injuries and I hope that there wasn't anything life threatening and that the hurt people are on the mend.

Ironically, one of the things that I really hate - scraping frost and ice off my car windshield, may have kept me out of that accident. Every annoying thing that happened this morning probably kept me from being right in that spot at the time of the accident. So I am going to make a mental note on a piece of paper* to be thankful for life's little annoyances.

*one of my dad's phrases

It's time to take the brick off the gas pedal

On North Road, there is a lighted sign up to remind drivers that the Speed Limit is 30. The sign also says to Buckle Up, It's the Law.

This sign is serving as a reminder, and you can bet there will be a crack-down on speeders on North Road in coming weeks, so watch your speed there.

Since the sign's on North Road, I wish they would add scrolling instructions for how to navigate a 4-way stop. I also think the time has come to have street lights at some of the cross roads of North Road, since people have so much trouble with 4-way stops (seems simple enough to me, but it seems to baffle a lot of folks - maybe if they put the cell phone down and paid attention it would help.)

But I often think that our air quality could be better if there weren't so many 4-way stop intersections with so much traffic. Imagine all those cars starting and stopping in 4 directions, if your house was nearby. If my house was there, I'd never open the windoww of my house - we'd all be killed by carbon monoxide poisoning!

Peer Pressure While Driving

Have you ever been first in line while driving, waiting to turn safely, and the person behind you is incredibly impatient? You know the type - they want you to pull out in front of incoming traffic, just for them? Because you refuse to peel out dangerously, they start beeping their horn at you.

I just wish I had a sign to stick out of my window for them. It would say something like:

"SHUT UP. Just because you didn't leave home early enough and now you need to rush, it's not my problem. I refuse to drive dangerously. The time to rush was before you left home. Don't rush while driving, it's dangerous. Yes, I heard your horn. I know you thought I was sleeping, but I wasn't. I'm sorry I held you up by one nanosecond. I would like to get going just as badly as you do, but I don't choose to wreck my car and put my entire family in danger just to please you, a total stranger. Get a grip you ____ing moron."

But I think even Cecil Sellers over at A Better Sign couldn't get all that on one sign that I could hold out my window. I still think this is a very marketable sign.

Reader comments on Snellville reversible lane video

Yesterday, I posted a video about End of the Reversible Lane System in Snellville that features interviews and information about the medians going in on US78.

One of our blog visitors gave me his opinion of the report.

He said the video was ridiculous, because the report makes it sound like the medians will stop traffic accidents - he said "there will still be accidents even with that median."

Other comments:

"It will be a disaster. All they need to do is look at Memorial Drive in Stone Mountain. It had nice businesses, but within a year of the median going in, the quality businesses left and were replaced by check-cashing places and raggy looking pawn shops. I used to go there to shop, but once the whole area went downhill, it wasn't worth driving there anymore"

..... "it also wasn't worth going there, because having to go a mile out of my way to get to a store I wanted was a real pain. I would have to keep U-turning to get to where I wanted and it was more trouble than it was worth to deal with that."

He also pointed out that the statement in the video that the medians would open up traffic. He said "that's Orwellian double-speak. How can it go from non restricted traffic to restricted and help traffic flow more freely?"

I am personally puzzled by the business owner featured in the video who thinks the median will help his business. I think it will only help businesses that are at the opening points of the median units.

Well it's kind of a done deal now. I hope it won't have the bad result that happened in Stone Mountain, but only time will tell.

Let's keep Snellville kids safe on the road!

I read a statistic today that of the children who should be in booster seats, less than 20 percent are in proper safety seats. I can believe that.

When I pick my son up from Pre-Kindergarten, I noticed a lot of people just open the door for their 4-year olds, and the kid would climb in, the parent wouldn't do anything except get in the driver's seat. I wondered how the kids were managing to strap themselves into their booster seats, because my very tall son has a little difficulty himself, I need to strap him in. Well now I realize the reason they are so quick to be on the road again is probably that they aren't using booster seats. A lot of people think that once their child has outgrown the baby safety seat, they don't need anything else, but the rule of thumb is that your child needs to be 8 years old OR
4 foot 9 inches tall. So, even if your child is 8 years old, if he's 4 foot 3 inches tall, he still needs to be in a booster seat.

The National Highway Safety Administration has a page all about booster seats and why they are important to raise your child up so that the car's seatbelt will fit them properly. Check it out at this LINK

Booster seats are not terribly expensive - below is a selection of booster carseats available at Amazon. I've found that checking out the ratings and reviews is a great way to make a wise buying decision.