When Traffic Solutions Cause Travel Delays

Delineators used to cordon off a bus lane to the Lincoln Tunnel on Route 495 in New Jersey are causing delays, reports Larry Higgs. When the plastic poles are knocked out, traffic is halted so they can be manually replaced. In addition, the delineators are put in and taken out each day by hand. 

"Two kinds of delineators are currently used, hollow yellow plastic tubes with reflective bands on flat sections of Route 495 and a different model on hills with a large body and a peg on the bottom that fits in holes drilled in the road," says Higgs.

Port Authority officials say the problem is narrower lanes and wider buses, says Higgs. The agency is looking at solutions, including replacing the current delineators with more stable ones and using adhesives that would keep the poles in place.