Current traffic patterns give Valley drivers red light

A Spectrum, by Howard H. Bess

This past summer has seen a thorough reworking of the Palmer/Wasilla Highway. It is welcomed and appreciated. The ruts are gone. New and more guardrails with the latest safety features were installed. New turn lanes have been provided.

Now the question that I hear is "When are they going to four-lane the Palmer/Wasilla Highway?" Whoa! It is true that four lanes can carry more cars than two lanes, but that is an answer to an irrelevant question.

The real questions that need to asked are (1) what do we do with cars when they come to the intersection of the Palmer/Wasilla Highway and the Glenn in Palmer, and, (2) what do we do with cars when they come to the intersection of the Palmer/Wasilla Highway and the Parks in Wasilla? Currently stoplights greet a motorist at both ends of the Palmer/Wasilla Highway. At the very point at which we must figure out how to disperse traffic, stop and go lights act as a plug to the flow of traffic.

Stoplights are designed to control traffic, not to disperse traffic. When dispersing of traffic is needed, stoplights have no function. They are actually a negative influence. Take a look at what is already happening. Cars are backing up for blocks in Palmer and for a half mile in Wasilla.

The solution to traffic flow problems at the intersection of the Glenn Highway and the Parks Highway is in the process of construction. It is a $100 million solution complete with grade separations and bridges. Can you picture the same solution at the Palmer and Wasilla intersections of major highways? (Yes, the Palmer/Wasilla Highway is a major highway.)

Unless people are keeping their thoughts secret, there is little talk of solutions to the developing problem. With one exception there is no evidence that the officialdom of the Valley is thinking about the problem. In the recent elections did anyone hear candidates speak of a solution? Has anyone heard the borough mayor or assembly members call for public discussions? Has anyone heard the borough manager or planning staff make any reference to the need for a plan?

The one exception is Mayor Jim Cooper of Palmer, who has been a part of such discussions with The PARCS Group that meets each Wednesday morning at Vagabond Blues for coffee.

Somehow we Valley residents must get serious about planning. The borough mayor and assembly played a cruel hoax on Valley residents recently when they passed a conditional-use ordinance. They actually believe they did something constructive. What the Valley needs is a plan. Then we can become serious about zoning.

The first task in serious planning is to produce a road and street system. The automobile is a fact of life. The Valley must figure out how we are going to move cars and people about in a helpful and coherent manner.

Do I have a plan? No, but I am familiar with some of the concepts behind good road planning.

The Valley needs a road and street system that acts like a large sieve. A sieve is a fascinating tool. A sieve has no bottlenecks. A sieve slows but does not stop flow. A sieve disperses flow rather than concentrates flow.

The specifics for Wasilla are very complicated. Wasilla has strip commercial, a series of lakes and a very active railroad -- all make the dispersing of traffic very difficult. Palmer is different and I believe creative solutions can be found. I can envision a system in Palmer that features a network of streets, avenues and boulevards without a single traffic light in sight.

The Valley desperately needs a plan, and a reasonable plan will begin not with a conditional-use ordinance but with a road system for the Valley. Further, some things about road planning should be apparent to the thoughtful person. For instance, a plan to move cars around the Valley effectively does not start with a four-lane Palmer/Wasilla Highway.

Howard Bess lives near Palmer.