More passing lanes wanted on SR 195

Left, Nancy Flechsig and Nancy Mack fill out surveys at the DOT’s listening post in Pullman April 12. Both said they wanted improved passing lanes on Highway 195.

Citizens of Whitman County let the state Department of Transportation know they want more passing lanes on Highway 195. By doing so, they may make it easier for those passing lanes to be built.

DOT officials held a series of listening sessions in Whitman County last week to gauge public opinions about how best to improve safety on the highway.

Most of the respondents at the stops in Colfax, Pullman and Rosalia called for more passing lanes, said Dave Dean, route development engineer for the DOT.

Many complained the highway offers few chances to safely pass when large trucks and farm traffic travel below the speed limit.

Dean said calls from regular SR 195 travelers for more passing lanes will make it easier to obtain funding to create those passing lanes.

“If we can have these results and have projects designed, it will be that much easier to get it off the ground,” he said.

He added right-of-way for more passing lanes was purchased by the state in certain spots along the highway.

Many other respondents at the April 14 session in Rosauer’s at Colfax called for safety studies of Highway 26. Many cited the high volume of student traffic there as making the road less safe.

“You guys really ought to be looking at 26,” Daniel Declue of Colfax told Dean. “That road is way more dangerous.”

Dean said the DOT will take a look at the safety of SR 26 because of the comments. He added the agency will work with WSU and the Washington State Patrol to stress safe driving techniques at the new student orientation sessions each fall.

Dean noted some alternatives to make roads safer may include more signs to catch drivers’ attention and moving fog lines closer to the traveling lanes, a strategy which can psychologically slow drivers down.

Dean said the installation of rumble strips in the center of SR 195 is one of the most effective and cost-effective safety measures.

Residents can still weigh in on the SR 195 safety study online at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/US195.