Fuel prices in the Inland Northwest are at record highs now _ an average of $1.92 per gallon of regular unleaded in Spokane, $1.90 in Coeur d'Alene.
Here's a little something to help you laugh through the tears.
As a Boston University graduate and Red Sox fan (don't worry the Mariners are still my number 1 team), I'm concerned about a recent development in the saga of the ``Reverse the Curse'' sign along Boston's Storrow Drive.
The sign was originally intended to indicate a ``reverse curve'' along the roadway, but years ago a Red Sox fan painted the now famous message to try to rid the team of Babe Ruth's curse. But after years of replacing the sign with a fresh one, only to have the graffiti reappear, officials are fed up. An article by Boston Globe writer Mac Daniel explains the options:
1. Keep it and keep replacing it when it is defaced.
2. Install a new sign that uses a graphic rather than words since the graffiti hasn't changed the curse yet.
3. Take it down and present it to the Red Sox.
Personally, I'd hate to see the sign go.
Are there any local signs that have special Inland Northwest importance? E-mail me with your thoughts by clicking my name below.
Public Citizen, the consumer safety group formed by Ralph Nader, is taking on the auto industry for failing to make sure that seatbelts will work in rollover crashs. Six of 10 car occupants killed in rollover crashes were wearing their seat belts, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Public Citizen says that a number of factors contribute to higher death rates in rollovers than other crashes. Belts sometimes come undone or allow drivers and passengers to be partially ejected. Weak roofs can also crush vehicle occupants.
They're urging carmakers to install better belts and strengthen car SUV roofs.
The Inland Empire Mustang Club will be celebrating the car's 40th birthday tomorrow between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. at Gus Johnson Ford.
The group averages about 130 families, says club President Jim Fox, and cars range from the very old to newer Mustang models. Fox owns a 1970 convertible and a 1980 coupe.
In addition to babying their cars, club members also work hard to help local charities. So while some will be at the Gus Johnson Ford celebration Saturday, you can also see others at KHQ's Spokane Guild School penny drive tomorrow.
Cathy Evans dubbed her 1966 Mustang Buttercup. She said she'd been longing for one since high school, and finally bought this beauty three years ago. It has just 76,000 original miles on it.
For all you Mustang buffs, here's a little trivia for the car's 40th birthday:
- On the first day in 1964 that Ford offered the Mustang to car buyers, it sold 22,000 of them. In the first year, the company sold 400,000 of them.
- The very first Mustang was briefly driven by a pilot in Newfoundland, Canada before Ford bought it back to save for posterity.
- Average price for a Mustang in its first year of production? $2,812.
The Ford Mustang turns 40 on Saturday! So in honor of perhaps the most all-American of American cars, Getting There is seeking Mustang owners for a birthday gallery.
E-mail me a picture of your Mustang, and I'll post it on this site.
The surprise of the day is that the amount of salt used on U.S. highways last year was more than 12 times the amount used for food.
The Salt Institute (did you know there was such a thing?) reports that about 19.4 million tons of salt were used on roads last year compared to about 1.6 million tons of food grade salt.
I have to wonder if that has anything to do with deer along the highways.
Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat offers a little insight today into the West Coast's rising gas prices. To find out more about Shell's ``Wow'' memo, click here.
It's another sign of spring! The Washington State Department of Transportation is opening the North Cascades Highway tomorrow.
The highway, also known as State Route 20, will open at 10 a.m. Thursday.
Flooding and serious rockslides forced the state to close the highway earlier than usual last fall, but all of the damage has now been repaired.
It's a beautiful route. And despite its name Lake Diablo, a highlight of the highway, is a heavenly spot.
A sure sign of spring is that the Spokane County Sheriff's Department will begin bike patrols of the Centennial Trail on Thursday.
The goal is to stop crime along the trail, like vehicle prowling and underage drinking. But do they know how to fix a flat?
An auto executive calling for higher gas taxes?
That's just what Ford Motor Company CEO Bill Ford, Jr. did today at the New York Auto Show. Ford said that the U.S. government should increase its gas tax by 50 cents a gallon or give buyers a $3,000 tax break to buy fuel-efficient cars.
Bill Ford has long advocated for more fuel-efficient vehicles, but he complained Wednesday that government regulations and customer preferences make it difficult for such vehicles to compete in the marketplace.
Ford is introducing a new hybrid Escape, which the company brags drove 37 hours straight in Manhattan traffic.
Other hybrid cars on the American market now include the Toyota Prius and the Honda Insight and Honda Civic Hybrid.
The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the federal government over its ``no fly'' list, saying that it violates U.S. citizens' Constitutional protection from unreasonable search and seizure.
The list is managed by the Transportation Security Administration, and has created problems for many innocent passengers. Newspapers and television stations all over the country last year pursued stories about local ``David Nelson''s who were being hassled at the airport because of the list.
A David Nelson is in fact one of the plaintiffs in the ACLU case.
A little laugh for those of us who fly no-frills airlines, courtesy of Scott Adams.
OK. We all learn the basics when we get our drivers' licenses, but the longer I work on the transportation beat, the more I run across obscure Washington rules that surprise me.
Here's one little-known rule to add to your basic knowledge of the road:
Passengers may ride in the bed of pickup trucks, but only if there aren't enough seats in the cab. Every seat in the cab has to be filled before anyone sits in the back. That means if you have one of those uncomfortable bench seats, and it has belts, your 6'5'' cousin Jimmy has to sit there if the seat isn't being used by someone else.
And the bad news for the kiddies who like riding in back is that adults are required to give kids the seats in the cab. The Washington State Patrol webpage I checked isn't explicit, but I'm guessing that doesn't include the driver.
UPDATE: As of 5:10 p.m., the accidents are cleared, but things are looking pretty nasty at the Division off-ramp. The off-ramp traffic is backed up onto I-90.
Two collisions on eastbound I-90 have clogged the works up near the Maple and Monroe ramps. The right lane is shut down and traffic is slow going.
You can see for yourself by clicking on the webcam links to the right of this post. The Spokane Regional Transportation Management Center is estimating that the wrecks will be cleared by about 5:15 p.m.
Hang in there. You're almost home-free for the weekend.
Woo-hoo! The city of Spokane is out striping Division Street today, and will be making its way around downtown streets next.
Don't know about you, but even though I consider myself a good driver (don't we all?), I sometimes feel a bit like a drunk when I'm trying to figure out where the lanes are this time of year. Washington and Stevens are the worst for me.
Do you travel any streets where the lack of stripes right now is a particular hazard? Let me know by e-mailing me at amyc@spokesman.com.
OK. It may be time to stop complaining about the price of gas. Turns out that little kid fuel -- milk -- is the real price climber right now.
The Associated Press is reporting that prices for a gallon of milk could climb as high as $3 pretty soon. Kinda puts the whole gas thing in perspective.
Moo!
In honor of April Fool's Day, here's a tribute to the practical joke.
You may have seen them, but if not check out these fake bullet holes. They're a surefire way to freak out anyone who loves his or her car. Just make sure you get out of the way if they try to run you over!
