If you haven’t noticed, it rains here sometimes.

When it does, it gets gray, almost dark.

Considering that, you’d think folks would have learned how to turn on their lights when the rain starts.

In case you’re thinking

"I can see fine without my lights," that’s not what we’re talking about.

It’s a simple concept: Turn on your lights so other drivers can see you.

The next time you’re driving in a downpour, look out your rearview mirror.

See that shadow-like smudge that seems to be keeping pace behind you?

That’s another car with its lights off.

Worse, if you can barely see someone behind you, chances are it’ll be extra tough to figure out how fast it’s going, if you have enough room to change lanes or if the car is going to smack into you.

While state law doesn’t require that you turn on your lights on a stormy day, flipping them on is strongly encouraged by the State Patrol.

"You don’t have to have them on during the day, but common sense says you want your lights on when it’s bad weather so other people can see you," said Trooper Lance Ramsay.

Boiling it down, when you get behind the wheel, it’s not just the groceries bouncing around in your backseat, it’s the lives of everyone else on the road, including the rest of us.

And we don’t want to be smashed like tomatoes.

Lighted freeway signs — those that tell you trouble is up ahead — have been used since last summer as part of the nation’s Amber Alert system.

You might have seen the Amber Alert that was used to find Rufina Cortes-Sanchez, who was kidnapped from her Mount Vernon home last week.

Amber Alerts go out when law enforcement officials are on the lookout for a child who may have been kidnapped. A quick response can be critical in finding the missing child.

The same warning gets played on the Department of Transportation’s highway advisory radio system, 530 AM on the dial in most areas.

The department also uses its "Eyes and Ears" program to help locate possibly fleeing vehicles for the State Patrol. It’s a program that alerts state workers in the field to watch for a suspect vehicle.

The program works, too, as a state worker spotted a suspect during an Amber Alert in February.

For more information, call the transportation department’s Commuter Information Line at 206-DOT-HIWY (206-368-4499). The Commuter Information Line may also be reached toll free in Washington at 800-695-ROAD (7623). TTY users can call 800-833-6388 and ask for 206-515-3683.

Q: I live in Snohomish and work in Everett. My daily trip to work takes me down Highway 9 north over the U.S. 2 overpass. I turn west onto the U.S. 2 onramp. As you merge onto U.S. 2 it is a two-lane westbound highway that quickly becomes one lane. I have seen many near collisions at this location.

Could the two westbound lanes of U.S. 2 merge into one before the merge with the Highway 9 ramp?

Randy Walbrun, Snohomish

A: Construction begins this summer to solve this very problem.

When done, the two lanes on westbound U.S. 2 will merge before that on-ramp. The vehicles entering the roadway at Highway 9 (as you do) will only have to merge into the one westbound lane.

The state Department of Transportation will also add a signal at the top of the onramp from Highway 9 to U.S. 2. This will allow drivers to turn left safely. The department expects to complete all of this work by fall.

Jamie Holter,

state transportation department spokeswoman

Have a question about what’s happening on a road near you? E-mail The Herald at stsmarts@heraldnet.com.