Turns out electronic highway signs aren't as 'variable' as drivers hoped

it was a painful TIME, you may recall, waiting for those electronic highway signs, which promised to yank us by our very lapels into the Great Age of Communication.

In three stages that stretched over years, the Virginia Department of Transportation constructed electronic variable message signs throughout Hampton Roads. The excruciating part was waiting for the signs to get "plugged in," so they'd actually say something.

At the James River Bridge, they've long since been plugged in, and we're still waiting.

The signs before the bridge display messages, i.e. "Fog Ahead," "Accident Ahead." That's about 5 percent of the time, reader Steve Waddell said. The rest of the time, the signs are blank.

Waddell, who lives in Smithfield, would like the signs to inform motorists of bridge lifts.

At least, he said, the signs could say SOMETHING: "Trucks Keep Right," maybe, or "Have a Nice Day."

Not gonna happen, VDOT spokesman Harry Kenyon said.

"The current signs we have for the JRB are preset with standard messages," Kenyon wrote. "They are not capable of displaying times for scheduled openings."

Not capable?

"That sounds like you have a painted sign," Waddell said. "That's the reason for having LED - so you can change it."

Kenyon said bridge openings are unpredictable because the JRB has to open when a request is entered. Some other bridges, such as the High-Rise Bridge, require advance notice.

Coast Guard bridge administrator Waverly Gregory told The Warrior that JRB-bound commercial vessels often issue a two-hour notice, albeit informally, to Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel personnel. So the information is out there.

There's another problem: the placement of the signs, which sets right-thinking folks to head-scratching. The variable message signs are posted at the foot of the bridge in each direction. By the time you read the message, it's too late to do anything about whatever awaits.

Kenyon said VDOT is planning new stop barrier gates, and part of the plan involves advance warning signs on U.S. 17 North near the U.S. 17/U.S. 258 intersection. There's no timetable for the project.

We waited a long time for the cart to get here. In this case, it seems the horse is still on order.

Readers, do you encounter problems/inadequacies with other electronic signs on our highways? Let The Warrior know.

Watch out!

Midtown Tunnel: A lane will be closed daily through Thursday morning from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. for lighting and maintenance repairs.

Watch list

Last spring, The Warrior wrote about scofflaw Norview High School parents dropping off students at the curb on Chesapeake Boulevard, rather than in the parking lot.

Problem is, that rightmost lane on southbound Chesapeake Boulevard is used by fast-moving cars exiting I-64 East. Last year, Norfolk police responded to Norview student Corinne Carmody’s complaint and issued 15 tickets within about a week.

I reported a few weeks ago that, according to reader Kenny Newton, the fix had come undone again.

Last week, Norfolk Officer Richard Jensen told The Warrior he worked the area for several days, issuing 18 “No Stopping” citations.

An attaboy for Jensen and other Norfolk officers, who consistently take ownership of the traffic-control issues The Warrior forwards from readers.