Wisconsin's Practical Joke
Wisconsin's Department of Transportation played a wonderful practical joke on me Sunday afternoon. (Of course, it might just be a mistake brought about by poor design; we'll discuss that below.)
When I headed south on 94, after being on the road for 10 hours, I exited at Highway 50 for a short break and to fill up with gas. The traffic on 94 was quit heavy due to road construction and I decided to take a chance on the "Alternate 94" route. That's when the fun and games began.
The "Alt 94" route brought me a bit south to Highway D; the signs sent me west on Highway D. After a long, long ride the signs sent me north through the town of Bristol, and then eventually east on Highway 50. Yes, indeed, after a good long tour through the countryside, the "Alternate 94" signs brought me back to the same place I'd started.
After examining the map I picked my own alternate road to avoid 94 southbound, and I was not too surprised to see "Alternate 94" signs along the route once I actually reached the road itself (not along the way to the road, of course).
I believe this incident illustrates a fundamental truth: disaggregation requires communication. I don't expect the construction workers on the road to set up the signs for the alternate routes; these are separate jobs. But unless the two separate agencies communicate with each other — unless the sign department tracks the progress of open and closed roads and the current state of the signs — then this sort of silly and maddening behavior becomes almost inevitable. Wisconsin DOT can get away with this sort of miscommunication (are you going to drive on a non-DOT road?), but private companies with non-captive customers don't have that luxury.
Then again, maybe it was a practical joke, and there's a betting pool somewhere in the Wisconsin Dept. of Transportation. If so: good one, guys. I'll remember it when you visit Chicago...
Topics: · government
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