Getting your car off to the side is important

QThe reason I can’t always move over if there is a disabled car and emergency vehicle is that I often can’t see that there is anyone or anything on the side of a freeway until I’m almost upon it. The lane next to me has cars, so I can’t move over and I’m not about to slam on my brakes and get rearended. — M. Lahann

A

I understand, which is why the law says move over or slow down, but does not say to slam on your brakes. It isn’t perfect, but aims to raise awareness of drivers of potential risks. Q

One of the most critical things I learned as a San Jose police officer was that if a vehicle is stopped on a roadway due to an accident or breakdown, it is critical that the driver realize that there is a real danger from a second collision. Here are a few suggestions:

• Get your vehicle off the road as far as possible. It won’t hurt to park in the dirt if it’s available. • Wait before getting out of the car. Ensure it’s safe before removing seatbelts and opening doors.

• If changing a tire, have a passenger stand and WATCH oncoming traffic.

• When reentering traffic, make sure you have room and accelerate to speed ON THE SHOULDER. Do not merge at 15 mph into a 65 mph stream of traffic.

— Jim Thurber, Mountain View

A

Readers, please heed these valuable tips from officer Jim.

Q

What’s with the road surface on Alma Avenue where it goes under Highway 87? They replaced this roadway this spring down to the dirt. But shortly after it was completed, I noticed a “washboard” section just after the underpass that seems to just get worse. Why is this allowed? This was a new construction and the results are embarrassing.

— Cindy Graham,

San Jose

A The city inspected this section of Alma but did not find any “washboarding” (or concrete faulting) on the new pavement. There are a few possibilities to explain what you are seeing:

There is some white curing compound that was applied transversely to the concrete surface in a back-and-forth motion, making the concrete appear to have ripples, which might appear to be washboarding.

The city requires final texturing after placing concrete. This provides skid resistance. In this case, a “heavy broom finish” was used so that’s what those transverse lines are.

Over time, those lines will fade and “diamond grinding” may be needed at that point to provide enough of a rough texture to provide adequate skid resistance.