TT PAVING

We always get more paving but never less. When politicians win elections, they pave the roads where their voters live as tribute for their votes. 

I administer a few Facebook groups. The groups mainly concern three geographic areas, varied ethnically and culturally. All or somewhat in the low income category, but the one outside the US can't be compared economically with those in the US; the national economies are so different. I would categorize the US examples as bordering on the Third World, and the non US one as genuinely Third World (with the widespread delusion that it is not). But that's another issue. All these places are addicted to paving. 

We noticed only today what all the fuss was about.that held up traffic on the TT last Wednesday. They were paving the shoulders for a mile or two north of Lone Butte. As usual,  I missed any notification about this important project. While the existing roadbed was already remarkably wide, the bike lane was narrow. But now the bike lane is wide, more than twice what it had been. (The paving of the shoulder may add about twice the width of the old bike lane.)

The new, wider paving is darker than the old bike lane. The white border stripe remains, and I hoped they wouldn't move it right to border the new, wider bike path. Frightening scenarios crossed my mind. That would make the roadbed so wide that I could picture there being two lanes in either direction. But that is only a fantasy, right? And were I a biker, I'd still be nervous with the wider lane. Will groups ride side by side so they can converse? What I would like best  would be to turn the old bike lane into a gravelled lane that would tend to emphasize the distinction between car lane and bile lane. That would have been good for rain water percolation into the ground too. 

But like I say, governments don't remove paving; they only add it.