Road construction always brings on a bout of ineptitude among drivers. To some people, orange barrels trigger a synaptic breakdown. Bad drivers become worse drivers. Thankfully, with the RNC’s red carpet looming o’er our every waking minute, Cleveland’s never seen more roadwork than what we’re dealing with now. 

Westside drivers, for our purpose here today, should try to grasp a few basic fundamentals real frickin’ quick, as idiocy has been running rampant at West 117th and Clifton (as well as several other, less egregious West 117th intersections). 

Here’s the main problem: Eastbound traffic flow formerly just sent all three lanes right across West 117th, right? But now the ongoing Clifton widening project and the 117th repaving project have sent up orange barrels and street signs like stalagmites. Nothing unique, really; this kind of shit happens all the time in Cleveland, but as witnessed by anyone at nearly any time at this intersection, most drivers can’t figure out what’s going on here.

See that photo? That’s Clifton Boulevard, looking east. Note the “RIGHT TURN ONLY” sign, indicating that the right lane is for right turns only. (Westside commuters and Lakewood residents, in particular, would note that nearly every bisecting side street along Clifton in Lakewood now features a “RIGHT TURN ONLY” sign. It’s a part of the project meant to ameliorate expanded bus traffic in those lanes. The signs have been up for weeks now.)

Given the RIGHT TURN ONLY thing and the orange barrels sprouting up along Clifton (see photo), the remaining two eastbound lanes on Clifton have to be rerouted a bit. That’s what those little white markings across the intersection mean. The lanes shift right. 

Again, these are all basic tenets of observation behind the wheel. Street signs and striping really do matter — all of which you’re paying for, by the way. Regardless of how drab this dreck is, these signs aren’t simple decor. They’re mean to communicate something to the people using the roadways. This is how the world works: by transmitting information from one person or agency to the next.

Hell, this is almost the exact same pattern that westbound traffic had to deal with earlier this summer. There is literally nothing new about this stuff.

In sum: If you’re the douchebag who ignores the RIGHT TURN ONLY sign, then you’re probably the douchebag who’s driving right across West 117th precisely as drivers in the other two lanes are shifting right. Do the math on that one.

 

This article appears in Oct 22-28, 2014.

Eric Sandy is an award-winning Cleveland-based journalist. For a while, he was the managing editor of Scene. He now contributes jam band features every now and then.

6 replies on “Those Lines on the Street and Those Signs Actually Mean Things, You Ignorant Dolts”

  2. It’s the signage that’s more at fault here than the drivers. Based on the (hardly visible) lane patterns the lane SHOULD be right turn only at all times but the signage actually indicates that the lane is right turn only during specified hours (too blurry to read in the posted picture but I think it’s 7am-9:30am). This leads to driver confusion and a super messy intersection.

  3. Honestly, Eric, it just sounds like you had a tough/annoying commute to work. This isn’t newsworthy and I’m kind of surprised that this was posted. How bout an article regarding the ass-backwards approach to the construction on W. 117th and the ridiculous long commute time that it has created? It literally took you 8 paragraphs to basically say “Hey West-Siders, quit driving like jack***es and follow the signs.” Maybe post your rants on your personal facebook page? Just a thought.

  4. The sad part of all of this is that the Lakewood Police say they are not enforcing the signs since RTA put them up and RTA is saying they will use transit police to enforce them once the entire project is complete….

  5. The issue is… When driving eastbound on Clifton during rushhour in the morning, Clifton is now one lane. The left lane ends IMMEDIATELY after 117th, making it next to impossible for traffic to merge, and the right lane is a RIGHT TURN ONLY. I get the frustrations because I deal with it every morning. I also get annoyed with the drivers who drive in the right bus lane the entire distance of Clifton. With all of that being said, I do believe that until the construction on the Cleveland side of Clifton is complete, there is no reason why the right lane should be right turn only. I will admit, i have on a few occasions gone straight from the right lane b/c it is so backed up, I cannot get over.

  6. SassyInCtown is absolutely correct the RIGHT TURN ONLY sign ALSO states 7-9:30am. So which is it? Is it right turn only between 7-9:30am or right turn only all day? Not to mention the white dashes indicating the lane shifts are inconsistent and sometimes they’ve forgotten to use them at all. It’s a construction zone with confusing signing, a recipe for disaster. Either way, being down to 1 lane during morning rush hour and school traffic is absurd and infuriating. Someone needs to get their shit together.

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