Erin

Sun, Mar 14, 2010 : 10:45 a.m.

R.I.P. buddy...we will all miss you and the great times we experienced with you!!!

Phillip Farber

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 3:23 p.m.

This senseless loss of life is regrettable. I wish to extend my condolences to the family and friends of the deceased. That said, I would ask that, as a society, we begin to take a long hard look at the dysfunctional nature of our transportation system. 1,409 people lost their lives in automobile crashes in Michigan in 2008. That's almost four deaths and four grieving families/friends/colleagues every day for 365 days. The toll was 37,261 nationally in 2008. The mind reels at the magnitude of the suffering. These events are not forces of nature. We have created the conditions that make them possible and likely. We need to ask ourselves why we continue to tolerate this senseless and endless loss of life -- losses that are a direct result of our addiction to highway/automobile based transportation. We have chosen "convenience" at the expense of death and dismemberment. We have chosen to live far from family, from where we work, shop and learn. We have chosen and massively subsidized a single, hugely expensive and fatally flawed system to travel between these destinations. We have refused to consider alternatives like living closer or re-engineering our living arrangements to make so much driving unnecessary. There are measures we can take to make a difference: --enforce lower speed limits --increase penalties for all forms of distracted driving --end road expansion --institute traffic calming measures --increase gas taxes and direct the proceeds to finance safer alternatives like intercity rail and enhanced public transportation --support healthy non-motorized modes like walking and bicycling I encourage readers to communicate with your representatives and demand they support any and all alternatives to the current one-trick-pony system of automobile dominance. Finally, I think we all know in our gut that we can expect a return of the $150/barrel oil prices that gave us $4/gallon gas. In the end, we won't be able to sustain the current system anyway. Why not begin to implement the future of transportation now instead of waiting until our current arrangements stop working?

daytona084

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 2:23 p.m.

Does anyone have statistics on traffic deaths in Washtenaw Co. year-to-date, in comparison to previous years? Seems like we have been going through a rough patch lately. Please people, take it easy, and hang up and drive.

Renee Tellez

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 12:36 p.m.

The expressway was open by Saturday morning.

bereasonable

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 11:50 a.m.

@djm Eloquently spoken. Thanks for your patience.

djm12652

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 11:25 a.m.

My deepest sympathies with the deceased man's family...@Jim Osborn, I understand your frustration at being stopped, but all is never quite as it appears; law enforcement has to take great lengths to get everything right, from a physical, as well as legal standpoint. And unfortunately for each and every one of us...the world does not revolve around each and every one of us individually...so when the traffic backs up, put your car in park, close your eyes for a moment, silently hope no one is injured or worse, has died; take a deep breath and relax...life is too short to stew about being stuck in traffic.

Jim Osborn

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 10:27 a.m.

It is a shame that people were injured and some died. A median barrier couild have prevented this. And why keep the highway closed in both directions for an extended period of time? A year ago I saw an accident on US-23 where the barrier worked. On south-bound US-23 about 4 miles north of Ann Arbor a car hit an ice patch, hit the median wall, and then about 6 to 8 more cars crashed into the suddenly stopped car. No one was hurt. But the police kept the road closed for over 90 minutes, talking to people and such. When tow trucks came, they first took those cars that were parked on the shoulder, then the median. At the end they took the 2 cars still on the road. After the first 10 to 20 minutes, there was little done by Northfield Twp Police that could not have been done off site, since there was nothing on the road to investigate. It would have been far better if the one lane was opened up and traffic allowed to continue and others diverted to North Territorial. By stopping all traffic when it was icy, the Washtenaw county salt and plow trucks could not maintain the road, exacerbating bad road conditions. This road was much more slippery down stream from the accident when I was allowed to leave more than 90 minutes later. At no time did the police seem concerned that the highway was closed and people were waiting in the cold.

Ariel

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 10:19 a.m.

Isn't the median made of cement? I was wondering what happened on 23 yesterday on my way home from work. That is so tragic.

Peregrine

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 9:26 a.m.

So a driver an SUV crossed the median and killed the driver of a sedan. I hope the Michigan State Police can determine what the SUV driver did wrong. Was he driving aggressively? Was he distracted? Was he in a proper state to be driving? To inadvertently cross a wide median is a serious error.

needed perspective

Sat, Mar 13, 2010 : 12:04 a.m.

a commuter inconveniece...often means a soul departed...consider that thought as you wait in frustration. Pray instead of curse if you have to sit and wait or take that detour...thank you.

Rom

Fri, Mar 12, 2010 : 11:53 p.m.

Freep.com is reporting the deceased as a 26-year old Algonac man. The driver of the Dodge Durango traveling south bound on US-23 crossed the median hitting a pickup driving northbound. The SUV then struck a Chrysler LeBaron driven by the Algonac man which subsequently rolled over multiple times. The driver of the car was declared dead at the scene.