Infra-Destruction
Driving around New Orleans is still an adventure. The traffic signal problems seem like they’ll never end. Sometimes I think maybe we should just stick with the tripod stop signs and call it a day. Parts of town are getting all new traffic light systems, like all along Broad St. But it seems that an awful lot of new traffic lights are being knocked down at about the same rate the crews are installing them. I drive around the city a lot taking photos for Squandered Heritage. It’s really beginning to wear on me. I have seen and heard countless accidents and near misses at Bienville and Broad which has been a free-for-all for over a year. Recently, I crossed the intersection at Jeff Davis and Bienville and the new lights were up and working, it actually kinda freaked me out. .
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I drove down St. Charles yesterday and couldn’t believe it. I think the only stop lights working correctly were Louisiana Ave and Napoleon. I think the stoplights in Mid-City are working better than the ones Uptown now.
The light in the neutral ground at Carrollton & Banks has fallen down, causing many people to not see the red lights on the sides of Carrollton, which are partially blocked by tree branches. People run that light all the time because they don’t see it. Be careful there.
The second picture above is at Galvez & Tulane. Do I win a prize for that?
St. Charles Ave. looks like hell. I figure they are going to let it go and then use all the Recovery $$ to fix it.
Did there used to be so many streetlights knocked over? Cause everyday there is a new one down.
Street lights and stop lights. I saw the intersection of Gentilly and Franklin is out again. A light pole is down just east of Franklin on Gentilly- looks like it was hit by a car. I actually saw a car that had plowed into a light on Elysian Fields just south of Filmore. And that’s just been in the last week.
So yesterday I almost died. Heading uptown on St. Charles at Jefferson, none of the yellow lights work. So instead of the usual sequence of “green-yellow-red”, the lights go “green-OFF-red”. Your brain sees green, then your brain fails to register OFF, and the next thing you know, the light is suddenly red and you’re going way too fast to stop. And of course the people waiting on Jefferson don’t know this, so they think you’re some kind of dick racing to beat the red light.