Bye-bye to Botts’ Dots is the rule of the road
To the dismay of most California drivers, it’s now official. Those popular Botts’ Dots will disappear from state roadways.
Caltrans has approved removing the nonreflective pavement markers that for the last five decades have warned motorists when they veer out of their lanes. The 20 million now in use will be replaced over time with new markers that are cheaper and safer to install and can better guide the thousands of self-driving cars that are in our future.
“I know many millions of California motorists owe their lives to the tiny sentinels, which offered a low rumble to alert drivers who were straying out of their lanes,” said Russell Snyder, a former Cal-
trans official and now executive director of the California Asphalt Pavement Association.
“I understand that technology marches on, but these little guys did a yeoman’s job for more than a half-century on California highways and I, for one, will miss them.”
Last week the state sent out notices that it is discontinuing use of nonreflective pavement markers and is increasing the width of all 4-inch wide traffic lines to 6-inch wide lines on highways.
California is one of just four states using Botts’ Dots. New federal standards have caused most to say farewell to the devices that were the idea of Elbert Botts, a Caltrans chemical engineer who once taught at San Jose State University.
But the move is not popular. Of the first 74 comments Caltrans received, all opposed getting rid of the bumps that have given motorists a gentle rumble as they unknowingly cross into another lane.
“No! Keep the Botts dots,” pleaded Deborah Miller of Redwood Shores. “They are a great safety help, especially in the rain, when painted lane markings might not be visible. Why does Caltrans want to get rid of such a fantastic safety feature? I am speechless.”
Others say they are thankful to be alive.
Edward Montgomery of Moraga was just a teen in 1973 when he and two pals were driving at 4 a.m. on the Long Beach freeway in the fast lane. When all three fell asleep, their VW bug began drifting off the road.
“I felt bu bump … bu bump … bu bump,” he recalled. “I woke up. We’re in the slow lane headed off the freeway. I yelled (at the driver). Fortunately, as he awoke, he turned left.”
Botts’ Dots were first tested along Interstate 80 near Vacaville and Highway 99 near Fresno in 1966.
The new preferred way to separate lanes is with thermoplastic striping, which looks like white paint but is actually material melted onto the pavement.
It lasts longer, reflects night-time light as did the dots, and costs $3 less for 30 feet of installation.
Replacing Botts’ Dots with the thermoplastic striping will take place as roadways get repaved. Work on Interstate 80 in Berkeley is expected to start next year.
But for those who like the bumps in the roads, Botts’ Dots may not disappear altogether as some mountain roads such as Highway 17 may keep them.
A six-year Caltrans study in the early 2000s showed that accident rates weren’t significantly affected whether the bumps were there or not. The state then decided they were no longer worth the maintenance effort or the risk to road workers.
“They only last about six months,” said Caltrans Vanessa Wiseman compared to six years for new lane dividers. “A lane must be closed for our folks to replace them by hand.”
And a couple of years ago road workers were injured on Bay Area freeways when cars twice plowed into them as they replaced worn-out Botts’ Dots.
But they may have another life. When Highway 85 opened in Cupertino, officials were presented with a souvenir. Botts’ Dots.
Join Gary Richards for an hourlong chat noon Wednesday at www.mercurynews.com/live-chats. Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@bayareanewsgroup.com.