Ridesharing could save time

April 28, 2008 12:15 am

COMMUTERS in the Fredericksburg area may be switching to carpooling and vanpooling to save money on gas, but you can also save time. Check out VDOT's High Occupancy Vehicle lane calculator to see how ridesharing can get you to work, and home, faster. Visit hovcalculator.com. Kudos to VDOT for including carpool lots in Caroline, Spotsylvania and Stafford as starting points.

Dear Kelly: In south Stafford, drivers turning left at traffic signals must wait for a green arrow, they cannot turn left on a solid green signal. Often you sit there and have to wait on the light because there is no traffic coming. Example: State Route 218 and Ferry Road. There always seems to be more people traveling west who end up stuck making a left at the light because it goes green before the eastbound traffic gets to go, so then you get the people cutting through the 7-Eleven on the corner. Surely that can't be good, not to mention illegal.

--James Hamburger, Fredericksburg

Yes, cutting through the 7-Eleven parking lot is not a legal traffic maneuver, said Tina Bundy, VDOT spokeswoman.

Motorists can only turn left on a green arrow signal at Ferry Road and State Route 218 because of the unusual arrangement of that intersection, Bundy said. The streets do not line up evenly, so motorists can only turn left on the green arrow for safety reasons, she said. VDOT realizes this is inconvenient when no oncoming traffic is approaching, but this is the safest signal pattern for now.

Dear Kelly: When will VDOT install a green arrow in the right lane at the intersection of Gordon Road entering State Route 3 east?

--Joseph Koenig, Spotsylvania

Only time will tell. The Virginia Department of Transportation has launched a review of this location to see if a green arrow is needed for that turning movement, said Tina Bundy, VDOT spokeswoman.

Kelly Hannon is The Free Lance-Star's transportation reporter. If you have questions, send them to Getting There, c/o The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401; or fill out the Getting There form on fredericksburg.com.