Our Washington State Governor, House Transportation Committee, Senate Transportation Committee, Joint Transportation Committee, Legislative Transportation Committee, Transportation Commission, Secretary of Transportation, Washington Traffic Safety Commission et al know it.

Yet, none use authority, responsibility, accountability, common sense, courage, or whatever to reduce the speed limit of 55 M.P.H. to safe speed on that bridge. It’s like the proverbial blind, each describing a different part of an elephant, but no one endeavoring to use the elephant to get the job done.

That’s not the case with our Golden Gate Bridge. There by the City of San Francisco, common sense prevails. The speed limit on that four-lane, single span bridge is safe. It’s been that way for many years and many lives saved.

And it doesn’t take a great genius to know; there’s much too much bureaucracy in Washington State transportation.

Second, it’s become plain to me, the words of our Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation, “Business as usual is not meeting the public’s transportation needs,” fall on deaf ears and blind eyes in our Washington State government and among our fellow citizens.

For example, we’ve named a new Transportation Secretary for a new $150,000 annual salary. That’s more salary than we pay our current Secretary of Transportation or current Washington State Governor. Moving-to-Washington State expenses may be added expense.

It’s as if our Washington State Governor et al refuse to learn from history, citizens, voters and taxpayers.

Third, it’s become plain to me that it’s time for me to stop the pain. It’s like the student who wanted to learn. Every day, the student learned and every day the guru hit the student with a stick. Finally, one day the student grabbed the stick from the guru’s hand and the guru smiled. “You have learned,” said the guru. “One, you will never know all there is to know. Two, you know how to stop the pain. Tres, no valen mas palabras.”

Gene David Hart
Bremerton.