CHESAPEAKE
The city will be performing quarterly maintenance on the shoulders alongside Dominion Boulevard, which attorneys have blamed for causing a 2006 crash that seriously injured two teens.
City work crews graded the gravel shoulders along a 6-mile stretch of Dominion just 10 weeks ago, said interim Public Works Director Eric Martin. But an inspection last week showed there were some areas that needed more maintenance, he said. Workers were out on Dominion on Monday and will be there until Thursday, according to a city news release.
Dominion Boulevard is widely considered as one of Chesapeake’s most unsafe roads. Last week, the city agreed to pay $4.3 million to settle a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of Corey Walters and Kimberly Kuffel, the teens injured in the 2006 crash.
Their Virginia Beach attorney, David Dickerson, has said that the crash was caused when an SUV swerved off Dominion, damaged a tire because of the shoulder’s poor condition, and smashed head-on into the teens’ car.
“I think they need to check the shoulder once a month,” Dickerson said.
Or they should pave the entire shoulder, he said.
“I don’t think it would cost anything near what they paid us,” he said. “That shoulder is just dangerous.”
Martin said the gravel shoulder along Dominion can be jarred if a heavy truck runs off the road. A rainstorm can also cause it to get saturated.
At the site of the crash, near the intersection of Dominion and Bainbridge boulevards, there was a six-inch drop-off between Dominion and the shoulder, Dickerson said. That is how the SUV damaged a tire, he argued.
A visit to the site last week showed that the city had worked to fix any drop-off.
Crews began grading shoulders at the intersection of Dominion and Cedar Road and continued north.
Martin was not sure how much it was costing the city to perform the maintenance this week.
“It’s not a small effort,” he said.
Mike Saewitz, (757) 222-5207, mike.saewitz@pilotonline.com
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Big john
Perfect John, your super human strength has kicked to keep your driving record perfect with no mistakes
Bridm187
Excellent point. Thank you for bringing sensability to this posting.
as for this "big talker"
I stand corrected. I was unaware that something had fallen off the truck in front of this SUV.
Another Big Talker
I know I'm just another big talker, but I do recall learning many years ago in driver's Ed that when you run off the paved road you're not supposed to attempt to drive back on at normal speed. You slow to a safe speed before even attempting to bring those tires back onto the pavement. I know that's easier said than done, but I've had to do that before and it works. Just something to think about if you're in a similar situation. Not every road in the country is going to have beautiful and perfect "escape" routes.
SUV Driver's Place
OK, I'm in the SUV driver's place. First, I will hang up the phone and pay attention to this 2 ton vehicle I'm trying to drive. Second, I'll back off the bumper of the truck in front of me. Third, well, I guess now I don't need a third - I'm drivin safe on a dangerous road that's ALWAYS crammed bumper to bumper. The SUV's insurance company should pay, not Chesapeake. She could have been ticketed for: 1) Following too close, 2) Too fast for conditions, and/or 3) Failure to maintain control of the vehicle.
big talkers
Ok so put yourself in the driver of the SUV's position
Your Following a Truck, a pile of debris falls off the truck and is heading for your vehicle, Do you A) Swerve left to avoid it onto oncoming traffic B) run over it risking it coming through the windshield or C) swerve to the right thinking it's safe on the shoulder which in the state of VA is legal to drive on.I myself would have done the same thing along with 90% of the population.All these talkers saying keep it between the lines, learn the law, it's basic Drivers ED.The city should have taken the money they received to fix the road and fixed it not bought all new cars for city officials and bought new lawnmowers for the inmates.
Sooner or later they will learn it's not the first and will not be the last
Big talkers that have never been in the situation it's very easy to sit behind the keyboards and complain but if you were in the same situation i guess you could have avoided everything running 50mph if not faster with the split second decision making.BLAH BLAH BLAH
The original story
The original story reports that the driver of the SUV swerved to avoid running over an object that fell off of a hauling truck that was in front of her. As she swerved off the paved road she tried to get back on to the road. That's when her tire went into the 6 inch rut causing damage to her tire and causing her to loose control. If that is the case, then she has reasonable expectation to have a safe and maintained escape route. If she was doing as you and others assume, then you are absolutely correct. And she should be the one to pay the 4.3 mill not the city. But I'm going off of what was reported. We all know how accurate and perfect the pilot reporting is {sic}.
phrog
I think Ira may have been talking about the driver of the SUV. It's obvious that you may have to swerve off the road to avoid an accident. But the driver of the SUV went off the road BEFORE the accident (which then caused the accident). Was the driver of the SUV ticketed? He/she may have been distracted by cell phone or something, which made them drift outside of the white line. I actually drove past the site today while working. The pothole part is clearly outside the white line.
Well let me tell you...
They need to start checking Elbow Rd. too. On many parts of that road there's no room for the painted lines because the road has fallen off. It's a very dangerous heavily traveled road. Try to do the 45 MPH speed limit and you'll get run over!
Come on Ira
I always enjoy your comments, but this one just doesn't cut it. If someone has to avoid an accident or a hazard that may cause an accident the escape route is the shoulder. You certainly don't want to go into oncoming traffic to avoid the accident or obstacle. Realistic expectation is that there is enough of a margin that is provided and maintained to allow for those unforeseen occurrences. The lines on the right side of the road are for reference as to where the travel lane ends and the shoulder begins. Now, it is up to the driver’s situational awareness to know the escape route and the safety measures that can be taken. The way people drive around here, I am always looking for my escape route. And all too often I have to use it.
Liability gates have opened up
If the city is going to set a precedent for accepting liability for the road condition leading to the crash, then I have to wonder if that means they are also accepting liability for things that fall short of fatalities, such as damage to suspension systems and tires, and other loss of control crashes that result in other injuries. This seems like a pandora's box the city has opened, and if the legal advice was to settle, it would be predictable to expect many more suits to follow.
How about this
How about we ticket drivers who go outside of the line painted on the shoulder? Pretty simple. If you cannot stay inside of the lines, then you are ticketed.
Or they should pave the
Or they should pave the entire shoulder, he said.
“I don’t think it would cost anything near what they paid us,”
I sure hope someone remembers this when they pave the shoulder and someone runs off the road, then off the shoulder and into a rut and then damages the tire!
They should pave the shoulder of the paved shoulder!...oohh, Then they should pave the paved shoulder of the paved shoulder of the paved shoulder!
Why am I paying for this?
Stupid Stupid lawsuit frenzied country.