To the editor:
I sent this idea to our state senator, Sue Serino; hopefully she will agree and bring this idea up to Albany for consideration.Relative to the recent wrong-way driver on the Taconic State Parkway this past Sunday claiming the life of another innocent young man, I have a suggestion that I have been thinking about in regards to this issue for more than a year.
My proposal would incorporate a tire-shredder strip at the top of each exit ramp, a proven technology and widely used by parking lots and rental car agencies (and others) throughout the country. This strip is embedded into the roadway; cars exiting correctly simply drive over it with the same sound and feel as driving over a grate in a road. However, anyone going the wrong way, the front tires pressure a trigger popping up the metal strip of spikes and shedding the tires, making the vehicle basically undriveable.
Being at the top/entrance of the exit allows two safety issues to be addressed: It gives the driver, who may have entered by mistake, a chance to stop and turn around; and, with the disabled car at the entrance to the exit ramp, gives anyone exiting properly a chance to see and avoid the disabled vehicle.
I would first install these on exits with a known problem of wrong-way drivers using them and then retrofit them until all current exit ramps have them installed. They would also be required on any new or reconstructed projects involving ramps, bridges, etc.
Dan Vera
Putnam Valley
Click here to follow Daily Voice and receive free news updates.
