Flaggers bear rage of Franklin County motorists

well it isn't always like they are saying...while waiting for over 20 mins in greencatle one day...i watched a flagger talk and text on his cell phone with his back to traffic...wonder why people get mad?

Kvetch, kvetch, kvetch! Flaggers are small potatoes when your federal government is dead set on creating a single-payer, national healthcare system that will ration healthcare and really stick it to senior citizens. The AARP should lose thousands of members due to it's support of ObamaCare.

The poor flaggers are the ones who end up taking the brunt of abuse, when the real culprits are the municipal planners and engineers, who plan these jobs horribly. Lets use Greencastle as an example:
They not only have had the entire main street through town blocked off, but at the same time have had the secondary side streets blocked off also, thus there is absolutely no way to bypass the construction areas. Many of these jobs could also be scheduled for nighttime hours when traffic is at its minimum. I pity the poor flaggers for the abuse they must endure, but I scorn the planners of these projects for there poor planning.

Simba24 wrote:

well it isn't always like they are saying...while waiting for over 20 mins in greencatle one day...i watched a flagger talk and text on his cell phone with his back to traffic...wonder why people get mad?

I do have to agree that SOME flaggers SOMETIMES aren't doing the best job that they can.
I've seen them talk and text too, and let 3 directions of traffic go and forget to let the other direction go twice.
For the most part they do a very good job tho' My dad worked road construction for 20 years and I've heard all sorts of stories.
Leave early, and if you can, take an alternate route.

Just one more example of how car culture promotes isolationism and poor attitudes.

Society is strange. It's unfortunate when you have a job in which you deal with people, even when 75% of the people you encounter are nice and civil, the 25% who behave the opposite are the ones you remember.

get some hot chicks with nice racks and short shorts most of us would wait in line all day

Interesting!!! What an educational tribute to flaggers!!!

If I was a flagger and someone got irate with me, I'd say, "Will this matter in three years?" LOL.

thay all no it is a wast of tax payers money we all need help and its not new roads its jobs.

Ruth wrote:

Kvetch, kvetch, kvetch! Flaggers are small potatoes when your federal government is dead set on creating a single-payer, national healthcare system that will ration healthcare and really stick it to senior citizens. The AARP should lose thousands of members due to it's support of ObamaCare.

The article is about flaggers not healthcare!

People complain about the condition of the roads, the government does something about the roads, people complain about the construction being done on the roads.

It's odd how the flaggers are telling us they're the ones who take the abuse... One Friday afternoon in June I was going home from work near Mercersburg. I was stopped in a line of traffic near Jane's Market, north of Mercersburg, on Route 75. Traffic DID NOT MOVE FOR TWENTY-THREE MINUTES!!! Now, I know that there is a time limit imposed by the state on just how long traffic is to be stopped in any direction and this was definitely a violation of that limit. Where was an inspector? I couldn't see one. Drivers were exiting their vehicles trying to see ahead. Several had children and pets that were walking about. The TWO FEMALE FLAGGERS at the intersection of Landis Drive, Route 75 (Ft. Loudon Road) and Keefer Drive were LAUGHING as they looked down the lines of stopped traffic in all directions. This continued the entire time I was in line. Don't tell me they take the abuse - they seem to find it amusing that motorists become agitated and impatient. On the opposite end of the spectrum are the two very kind, friendly MALE flaggers who have been working in Greencastle for the past several months. They say "good morning", will wave, will speak to you if you are stopped directly beside them, etc. They need no description - they, and other drivers, know who they are.

Drivers in PA are unhappy with being held up for construction traffic. You don't know how good you have it!

I talked with my son in Northern VA last night. They are beginning a project to put "hot" lanes (carpool or toll lanes) onto the capital beltway. For each route that passes over the beltway, there are two bridges; one carries traffic one way, the other is opposite. He says that they have taken 1 bridge for each route down between the 95 interchange and Tyson's Corner, and are tearing up the median to start work on those lanes. He says in some places there is a 30 - 40 foot drop if you don't stay in your lane on the beltway.

DC traffic is a bear to begin with, but it must really be awful now. I don't miss living in DC at all!

Tom wrote:

People complain about the condition of the roads, the government does something about the roads, people complain about the construction being done on the roads.

Generally, people in the Cumberland Valley enjoy complaining aabout something, anything! Just to hear the magic of their voices as they bitch and moan.

Disgusted wrote:

The poor flaggers are the ones who end up taking the brunt of abuse, when the real culprits are the municipal planners and engineers, who plan these jobs horribly. Lets use Greencastle as an example:
They not only have had the entire main street through town blocked off, but at the same time have had the secondary side streets blocked off also, thus there is absolutely no way to bypass the construction areas. Many of these jobs could also be scheduled for nighttime hours when traffic is at its minimum. I pity the poor flaggers for the abuse they must endure, but I scorn the planners of these projects for there poor planning.

You hit the nail on the head with this one.

At times a flagger might very well text or talk on a cell phone. You are still sitting and the thought might be "he/she is not paying attention and I KNOW it is ok to go." NOT. Along that lane of travel someone has told the flagger to keep the traffic there for the folloing reasons: a piece of equipment will be doing some special work and moving across the lane of travel or the work zone itself has moved some and the barriers/cones/signs need to be moved also. All kinds of reasons the flagger is holding the traffic. OR. They are just mean, inconsiderate people!(NOT) Be patient. The ones that REALLY impress me ARE the locals that KNOW the work is being done and do not leave with enough time built in for that docs appt. They are hilarious. No sense at all? No sense of planning ahead? If its raining, wear the correct gear to keep dry. Dont walk a mile and complain because you did not THINK! Flaggers and the workers get killed every week because of inattention or "road rage." Calm down. Plan ahead and be a decent human being.

say what say who wrote:

get some hot chicks with nice racks and short shorts most of us would wait in line all day

Why not some hot dude with short shorts and six pack abs.

SMILE wrote:

<quoted text>Why not some hot dude with short shorts and six pack abs.

I'll second that!

George wrote:

<quoted text>
I'll second that!

behave

Donald Dale Hutton wrote:

thay all no it is a wast of tax payers money we all need help and its not new roads its jobs.

When D.D. Hutton speaks...everyone listens, well if they could understand what he was writing?!?

My husband has been in construction for 10 years and every day he leaves for work I am worried for him. I live on a busy road that has been under construction for about a month now, and have witnessed the anger and hostility that these men and women face. On very few occasions is it NOT annnounced in some way, shape, or form that construction will be starting on a particular road. Like the other posters have said, plan ahead, take another route, or just be patient. These people are just trying to make a paycheck like the rest of us. Some people just have the luxury of an airconditioned/heated office. Stop and put yourself in their shoes for a minute and think what it feels like to them to hear you screaming obscenities at them. Every person working on the roads has someone who loves them and wants them to come home at the end of the day. Please think about that the next time you want to throw a fit b/c traffic is stopped for a few minutes.