MAINE, USA — We all know the feeling of being stuck in traffic on the highway because of an accident. Now, the Maine Department of Transportation is trying to reduce that problem by establishing new emergency routes across the state.
"Our goal is to be able to safely and effectively reroute traffic off the interstate system in the event of a major crash where the roadway needs to be shut down," Maine State Police Sgt. Aaron Turcotte said.
That's why the Maine Department of Transportation is adding new 'emergency route' signs on I-95.
The signs use the letters A through T going southbound and AA through TT going northbound.
"We're taking this proactive step so when those events do happen, we have everything in place to put people on a detour then back on their journey, back on the interstate," Steven Thebarge said. Thebarge is the Maine Department of Transportation Region Four manager.
For every minute the traffic backs up, police tell us there is a 2.8 percent increase for the chance of a secondary crash, and they can be just as serious.
"If we can reduce fatalities, which right now stand at about 20 percent as a result of secondary crashes -- if we could lower that just a small amount at a time, I mean that's hundreds and hundreds of lives that could be saved," Turcotte said.
The signs are currently going up on I-95 in the DOT's Region Four, which runs from Pittsfield to Lincoln. The department says it hopes to have emergency routes statewide within the next year.