Fancy freeway signs sign of times

Huh, I thought the existing signs on I-5 were the most worthless things the state had done in a long time. You know the ones … they tell you how many minutes you are from Lynnwood, or wherever. I’ve often wondered how much money was wasted on that superfluous information.

But now I’ve found something that makes even less sense: $20 million to put a new series of fancy signs on I-5. And $40 million more to do the same on I-90 and Highway 520. That’s $60 million to tell folks that they’re stuck in traffic. Shucks, I can usually figure that out for myself, thank you.

But the thing that really rips me is the fact that the only reason those signs exist is because the federal government can’t seem to spend our tax money fast enough. So they dole it out to the states, with a lot of strings attached. Gee, wouldn’t it be nice if that money could have stayed here in the first place? Or be spent on something useful, like education or law enforcement? But no, the idiots in D.C. think they know how the states should spend money. And if the states don’t play ball, they won’t get any money.

This is just another example of how screwed up the system is, and how the federal bureaucrats love to play puppet master at every opportunity.

David Alvar

Edmonds