Reducing Accidents on Rural Roads

There have recently been a number of accidents on rural roads in the surrounding area, all leading to death or serious injury. The most recent, a two car crash, resulting in two fatalities. This incident occurred in Woodburn, on French Prairie Road near the intersection of Lebrun Road, at approximately 7A.M. on November 6th.

Throughout Marion County, rural roads consist of hills, abrupt stops, sharp turns, and areas that narrow leaving little to no shoulder for evasive maneuvers. Though this is not especially unique to the area, it does present it's own form of driving challenges when coupled with increasingly inclement weather.

Passing distance, speed, road surface, the vehicles involved, environmental conditions, and countless other variables are all important things to consider while driving. On rural two-lane roads, at speeds at or above 50mph, they become critical concerns that should not be taken lightly! Many questions have been raised about the best practices concerning road marking criteria, safety enhancements such as rumble strips, and modern road treatments that increase traction while decreasing stopping distance. The specific criteria that is currently in use can be found in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) and on the Department of Highway Safety website (www.flhsmv.gov/).

Though many methods for increasing safety are available, the implementation of the strategies on rural roads can be limited by many factors: the size of the roadway, existing properties, access point locations(do mainly to road utilization by agricultural vehicles and equipment), and especially by local budgets.

A report cited by the Department of transportation - commissioned by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (http://www.highwaysafety.org), originally published by Ryerson University of Toronto - showed a twenty percent reduction in accidents on rural roads where center and shoulder Rumble Strips were installed.

A segment of the above study was done in Oregon. Two sites were monitored for a set period of time, where previously there were a total of 31 accidents resulting in 20 injuries, saw a reduction to a total of 6 accidents resulting in 3 injuries - after the installation of the rumble strips.

Though this would not have prevented this last incident, such enhancements could very well serve to prevent future accidents.


Links Related to the story and more on this topic:

• http://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/2014/11/06/crash-kills-two-shuts-down-french-prairie-road/18588911/
• https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/humanfac/pdfs/99206.pdf
• http://lanecountymugshots.com/2014/11/two-dead-head-vehicle-crash/
• http://koin.com/2014/06/19/5-injured-in-2-vehicle-head-on-crash-near-woodburn/
• http://www.pamplinmedia.com/mop/157-news/227649-90625-woman-dies-in-highway-211-accident-between-molalla-and-woodburn
• http://www.flashalert.net/news.html?id=1294
• http://d2dtl5nnlpfr0r.cloudfront.net/tti.tamu.edu/documents/0-4618-1.pdf
• http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/COMM/CRO/Pages/answer_team.aspx
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_surface_marking
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumble_strip
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundabout
• http://bikeportland.org/2014/10/02/bike-lane-rumble-strips-hawthorne-viaduct-coming-next-week-111768
• https://www.dot.ny.gov/programs/rumblestrips
• http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/10052/
• http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/local_rural/

Woodburn Thearter Project: All we need is money.

There is a nice theater in town.  Not nice because it is a theater, just nice because it is a space that everyone seems to connect with a special day or time in their life.  This would lead one to think that it should be an easy business to run.

For the last couple of years, I have been exploring way in which to reopen the theater -- and the best business plan for creating a reliable business for future generations to experience.  That is what we are really talking about with such a business.  Create a center that allows experience's to happen.  Somewhere for the local community to build memories.

This means that you have to structure your plans to the local community and be flexible enough to change over time.  I am not sure that this applies to everything that you do in business -- though I think this is the best approach for both the business and the community in this particular situation. 

I am not aware of any feasibility studies that have been done on this particular location.  Though I think that would be subjectively opposed to the way that you have to run this type of business.  You have to begin a project like this expecting to work for five years before you see a real return on investment.  Some amount of social marketing has to be done before you see a real result, or at-least one you can count on.

So in short the goal, which we will be expanding upon in later segments, will be to build a convertible theater.  One that can supply multiple configurations to allow small productions, stand-up comedy, as well as, motion pictures.  Each would have the opportunity of choosing their configuration; this allows each contractor, group, or the theater it's self to configure the space to provide a unique experience for the event. 

One of the specific goals will be to provide a space that is traditional in appearance in a default configuration.  By utilizing composite structures and advanced machining technology, we will be able to provide a transformable environment, that can host a talk, a prom, and more traditional entertainment. 

In this way, multiple events would be able to take place in the same day, a unique setup for each.  Allowing the theater to have a ROI then would normally be expected regarding a project of this size and scope.

By-in from the community is critical to the success of the project -- though the equity in the building at the end of construction should be more than sufficient collateral for insuring return on  investment; since the building will increase and retain it's value -- along with the equipment.