Andrew Shadow
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I'm not sure if it is one of the greatest but I sure have appreciated it being there on many occasions while traveling in heavy fog.
This Simple White Line Is America’s Greatest Unsung Innovation
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ST Gui
240Robert
Huh. I never thought about it for its intended purpose. And I've never been particularly plagued by any abundance of fog. It's probably something I've relied on from time to time without ever realizing it like the article said.
I wish there were a paint to keep lines from disappearing in the rain. I know about the refractive beads etc but the lines are still hard to see in the wet.
I'm curious about the arrow that reminds the driver on which side is the filler door. I've never seen it or even heard of it before now. But then I don't need it as my DB5 has filler doors on both sides.
I wish there were a paint to keep lines from disappearing in the rain. I know about the refractive beads etc but the lines are still hard to see in the wet.
I'm curious about the arrow that reminds the driver on which side is the filler door. I've never seen it or even heard of it before now. But then I don't need it as my DB5 has filler doors on both sides.
ST1100Y
Site Supporter
Reading you loud and clear...
Prior we had to join that EC all our center lines were yellow, with tiny glass beads added that acted as reflectors when getting hit by headlights during dusk, dark or dawn...
In the winter that yellow even partially shined through thin layers of snow and sleet on the road, enabling drivers to still keep within their lane during those odd conditions...
But now we have white lines, and for environmental reasons no glass beads added, during daytime they completely wash out on the light gray tarmac, during rain they vanish due the gray sky reflecting on the wet surface, and at night the headlight glare from oncoming traffic fades out anything anyway...
I miss our yellow, reflecting lines...
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'tiny glass beads added that acted as reflectors when getting hit by headlights during dusk, dark or dawn...'
Cats Eyes.
Invented by Percy Shaw in 1934.
en.wikipedia.org
Cats Eyes.
Invented by Percy Shaw in 1934.
Percy Shaw - Wikipedia
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ST1100Y
Site Supporter
Nah, they won't do that over here over risk of water ingress thus frost damage... (and dare if a push-biker would trip on them... he might sue the community...
)And if they brake loose I wouldn't want go get shelled by those objects thrown up by truck tires... neither on the ST nor in the car...
Obo
East Coast Canada
Used it many a time before rumble strips, mind you one helps to see and one helps for when you nod off or are inattentive.
Now, most cars that have a lane retention system, use the onboard camera to keep you between the "mustard & the mayo".
OP
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Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
Except that the newer environmentally friendly road paints are doing a fine job scuttling that technology. This technology only works if the vehicles sensors can follow the lines. In Montreal I don't remember the lines painted on the roads having ever been in worse shape. They are not, or almost not, visible all over the place. The person from the city of Montreal roads department who is responsible for painting the road lines was on the radio a little while ago. He explained that the newer environmentally paints that they are using now have created several hurdles. Firstly they are not as durable as the old paint and wear off more quickly. Secondly they take longer to apply than the older paint types. Thirdly they have a much smaller window during which they can apply them. Both the temperature and the humidity ranges that they must be applied under is much narrower and restrictive. All of this adds up to the lines must be repainted more often, takes longer to do, and because there is a much smaller window available under which they can be applied less gets painted before winter settles in again. The result is that the city is finding it impossible to keep up with the need.
ST1100Y
Site Supporter
Which proofs that all those features, bells'n'whistles, extras, technology lacks one essential thing... common sense...
Over here one would rather suspect the lobby of "road marking corporations" behind...
Interestingly would this slippery, public endangerment not crumble or fade within just a few weeks (ever tried to make a turn there in the rain, on a motorcycle
)...
"...all I wanted was breakfast..."
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Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
One interesting thing this new paint, in conjunction with all of the trees that have been planted, has created is navigating the proliferation of speed bumps. The yellow markings painted on the speed bumps wears off in no time, and the trees are now blocking the speed bump warning signs. The result is that the speed bumps aren't visible so everyone is going over them without having time to slow down enough because they don't see them until the last second. All of the speed bumps have deep grooves cut in to them form cars bottoming out on them. It seems to me that they might as well just put up stop signs. They are much cheaper to install and maintain, easier to see, and the result is the same as the speed bumps have become so aggressive that you have to almost come to a stop to go over them anyway, if you see them.
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Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
I suspect that the ones that stand proud of the road surface will not survive the first outing of the snow plows. The ones that are recessed I would think are pretty useless when they are covered with snow, ice, and the dark dense slurry that results from mixing all that with road salt. At least the painted lines, when the paint is present, are visible after the snow crews have done their thing. I have never seen the reflectors used anywhere up here in our winter climate. There must be a reason for that. I have to wonder if that is because they won't survive or be of much use.
This is new territory for me, what exactly is the difference between environmentally friendly and unfriendly road paints? I'm guessing its lower VOCs or something while the paint is drying. Then since the paint lasts 1/3rd as long they have to re-apply it three times as often, negating the original benefit of the lower VOCs. And that's assuming that the VOCs in the unfriendly paints actually have any noticeable effect on anything.
I like to think I'm in favor of things that are better for the environment, but the problem is the stuff I see is dictated by a bunch of PhDs who know one thing really, really well, but have no common sense.
As someone who rents cars for work reasonably often, I've known about this for decades. However, knowing which side to pull up at the pump, and being able to open the flap/cap are two different operations...the last Hyundai that I rented tested my ingenuity so severely that I even had to look in the manual (and couldn't find an answer there either). IIRC, the ignition key had to be removed from the key switch before the fuel flap would open.
ST Gui
240Robert
On place I see (presumed) knowledge of which side the filler door is on is at the Costco pumps. I constantly have to navigate morons who pull to the pump with the door on the opposite side of the vehicle.
These two stations have lots of lanes and one has surprisingly less traffic at them. Yet there are all sorft of these geniuses parked over the outside like of the lane standing in the lane blocking the path of passing cars.
Maybe they rented the car. Maybe the borrowed the car. Maybe they don't have the common sense that technology (</>) afforded them. LOL But at least they saved 30s wait for an appropriate spot to open.
I'm gonna need a louder horn. Or Costco could have shorter hoses.
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the Costco hoses are long enough to reach across most vehicles, so they're at least proactive in not requiring people to use a particular lane based on which side their cap happens to be located.On place I see (presumed) knowledge of which side the filler door is on is at the Costco pumps. I constantly have to navigate morons who pull to the pump with the door on the opposite side of the vehicle.
These two stations have lots of lanes and one has surprisingly less traffic at them. Yet there are all sorft of these geniuses parked over the outside like of the lane standing in the lane blocking the path of passing cars.
Maybe they rented the car. Maybe the borrowed the car. Maybe they don't have the common sense that technology (</>) afforded them. LOL But at least they saved 30s wait for an appropriate spot to open.
I'm gonna need a louder horn. Or Costco could have shorter hoses.
But, they can't fix stupid, or inconsiderate, so people will mis-align their vehicle and block traffic anyway.
I never use the gas pumps at Costco around where I live because they're so full of cars I don't need the aggravation, and their prices aren't any better than my local stations in the first place. I live in an area with many independents that are price-competitive with Costco.
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Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
I don't know what the difference is. He either didn't say or I don't remember. I do remember thinking that having all of those trucks burning a lot more fuel having to return to the same place more often, along with all the line painting equipment burning more fuel, negates any environmental benefit.
The same thing happened years ago where I worked. Equipment that is exposed to harsh conditions had to be painted more often after they switched to an environmentally friendly water based paint. Painting everything more often far outweighed any environmental benefits that the paint offered.
Obo
East Coast Canada
We had an issue here in the last month or so while they were repainting the center yellow lines. It started to rain while they were applying, and the paint ran. As a result, the lines are now blur areas, the driving lanes have a color wash to them, and they had to offer free car washes to anyone who drove thru the mess and got the resulting faded fling on their cars.
@dwalby I believe it's federal regulations on strict VOC limits are part of the reason for the switch to water soluble road paints. They neither reflect as well nor are as durable. I don't think they have any reflective media in them either, or not as much as they used to. The surface mounted reflectors I've seen in the US just aren't practical here given out winter snowplow use and road resurfacing schedules.
@Andrew Shadow I agree the new lane systems in vehicles are not ideal. My wife's 2026 Taos will often mistake the worn traffic lines on the road surface for "lanes" and try to steer the vehicle with them, regardless of the road markings. I've turned off lane detection on my car, as it's more of a distration to me vs helpful.
@dwalby I believe it's federal regulations on strict VOC limits are part of the reason for the switch to water soluble road paints. They neither reflect as well nor are as durable. I don't think they have any reflective media in them either, or not as much as they used to. The surface mounted reflectors I've seen in the US just aren't practical here given out winter snowplow use and road resurfacing schedules.
@Andrew Shadow I agree the new lane systems in vehicles are not ideal. My wife's 2026 Taos will often mistake the worn traffic lines on the road surface for "lanes" and try to steer the vehicle with them, regardless of the road markings. I've turned off lane detection on my car, as it's more of a distration to me vs helpful.