[Vision2020] Moscow, growth, and MHS

[Joan Opyr]

Joan wrote:

>Traffic congestion?  That's when you're the fourth car in line at the stoplight on Third and Jackson.   

And Ted replied:

"Joan, sometimes with your style of humor it is hard to tell if you are joking or not. But perhaps you have not been driving in Moscow at rush hour lately.  Moscow has developed traffic jams far more than just being the fourth car in line at Third and Jackson.  You are joking, it must be.  Because at various tight flow points for traffic in Moscow you can be backed up ten to twenty cars and sit through several cycles of red green red green light changes.  Of course this is small time compared to a complete stop on a 6 lane freeway in Los Angeles.  But I would rather stop the development of traffic jams getting any worse here than just going along with such developments because it is not as bad as LA.  I don't even want to use major urban areas as a reference point.  The way major urban areas of the USA have developed should never have happened in the first place."

I was joking, Ted; I'm sorry that wasn't clear.  It is true that my primary point of reference for traffic congestion are the horrors of Raleigh, Detroit, Columbus, Spokane, and Seattle traffic.  I've also survived driving in Washington, DC, Boston, London, Glasgow, Manchester, and Liverpool  I am, as I have pointed out, a city creature, born and bred.  But I agree with you that that is not an appropriate point of reference for Moscow.  I also do not want to see bottlenecks (however small they might comparatively be) developing in our downtown.  I do occasionally find myself stuck at Dysfunction Junction, that interchange "thing" where Highway 95 meets Highway 8, and both meet Washington and Jackson.  Trying to turn left at that interchange while heading East (so that one might reach Latah Federal Credit Union before it closes) is a nightmare.  And then, just when you think it's safe to go, an ambulance comes roaring up from the South, headed for Gritman . . . yeah, no thanks.

BTW, though, I still have to disagree with you about cheap property in Latah County.  The 219 acres for sale on Canyon Road is outrageously expensive.  I happen to know that it appraises at exactly one-half the present owner's asking price, but that's still too high.  You can live reasonably here, but I have found it difficult to live cheaply.  I had better success with that in Columbus, Ohio -- rents were lower there, and the apartments I could afford on my graduate student stipend were much bigger than anything a student could afford here in Moscow.  Oh, and milk and gas are more expensive here as well.  Just thought I'd toss that in.  (Being funny, Ted, being funny.)

Joan/Auntie E.   Get more from the Web.  FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com
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