Month: June 2018

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Shoulder Driving to Escape a Lineup

Q:  Recently I was pulled over after I drove on the shoulder when I got stuck in a border lineup on the truck route. I was given a warning and was told that it is illegal to drive on the shoulder, even if it is to avoid being stuck in a lineup to a location that I am not going to.  Blaine and other border towns frequently have long lineups not just on the state routes or Interstate, but on local roads next to schools, shopping and businesses. If you get stuck you cannot do a u-turn to escape. What is the law about using the shoulder of a road? Is there any accommodation to local residents who are not intending to go across the border?

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Don’t Get Tripped Up By The Sidewalk

Q: In local parks, sidewalk upthrusts (say, by tree roots) are marked by yellow paint for the length of the walkway re-elevation. That’s terrific. But what about regular sidewalks along streets where there is often a one-inch elevation change from one concrete section to the next? Can we call the city to apply yellow paint to those? Could we simply paint them ourselves in our own neighborhood? Streets often have the same upthrust problems and are a great surprise to bicyclists. Also those pedestrian courtesy outcroppings of sidewalk that shorten their walk across the street (but stop cold the parking lane) – unwary or at-night cyclists ram those all the time; some are painted yellow but most are not. Thank you from a voice of unfortunate experience.

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