Q: As another person recently wrote you, I am also annoyed with graffiti and dumping by freeways and on and off-ramps.
I live in Portola Valley and a few years ago took part in a cleanup at the ramp from Alpine Road to northbound Interstate 280. A couple of months ago, I was about to enter this on-ramp. It is a three-way stop. I stopped and waited to make the left turn. To my right, a large commercial truck that had exited I-280 was to enter the intersection before me. Typically, traffic at this stop would take a left turn onto westbound Alpine Road, but the truck went through the intersection and onto the on-ramp for 280 (which the driver had just exited).
“Huh? Maybe they are not familiar with the area?” I thought. As I entered the on-ramp, I saw the truck had pulled off to the left side that has a wide open dirt area. Lo and behold, the truck dumped debris!
There was no license plate on the rear of the vehicle. As I was on an on-ramp, now with traffic behind me, I was not in a position to see the front of the truck, but my guess is there was no plate there, either. I did look to see if there was a business name on the truck. There was not.
In my opinion, the driver knew exactly what and where he was going to dump the load in daylight and on a well-traveled on-ramp. I think it will be very hard to track drivers doing this illegal activity.
Many thanks for your column.
— Elizabeth Sippl
A: Have others seen blatant dumping like this along roads and freeways?
Q: A reader wrote recently to ask if he deserved a carpool lane ticket. That happened to me years ago on San Tomas Expressway. I got over in the right lane too soon because I thought my turn was the next one. The police were waiting for just such an action. He gave me a ticket. He wasn’t interested in my reason.
— Maxine Minckler
A: Mrs. Roadshow had this experience, too, some years ago on San Tomas Expressway.
Q: I have a safety issue on Interstate 680 northbound right after the Highway 84 cutoff. The fast lane near the Koopman Road exit is extremely tight near the white barricades. There’s a seam in the lane that catches your tire and pulls. You either go toward the barricades or into the next lane. Can anything be done? I’m just waiting for a crash.
— Anne, San Leandro
A: I’m trying to get an answer. In the meantime, other drivers need to know to be cautious here.
Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@bayareanewsgroup.com.