You might think I named my site The Big DumpTruck because I drive one. Or because I really, really like them. If you’ve been here long enough (since 1996? Or 1998 when I registered the domain?) you know that it’s called BDT because I used to have a really long commute, and I used my website to complain about it, and things like being stuck behind those mammoth dumptrucks that spew sand and rocks as the rumble along the highway. My website was me, throwing those pebbles and rocks at your screen. Or something like that.
I find those big dumptrucks hugely annoying when I’m trying to get to work. They take forever to get up to speed, and scare the hell out of me when I see one coming up behind me because I figure they have the stopping ability of a freight train. And they ping rocks off my windshield at 65mph.
I realized this morning that because it’s spring, all the construction projects are starting. Fantastic. Yippee.
The past two days, I’ve gotten stuck behind dumptrucks and other construction vehicles on my commute, and today it took me TEN MINUTES LONGER than usual (40 instead of 30), simply because the construction truck 4 cars ahead of me couldn’t get up to speed in my lifetime. I know for you Boston commuters 10 minutes is a laugh, but think about this – there was no other reason for my delay than this truck. When he slowed because the car in front of him was turning left, he couldn’t get back up to speed again. The on-ramp to 495 is a hill…I was only doing 20mph when I pulled on. Ten extra minutes because of ONE vehicle. So ya, I’m ranting about 10 minutes.
I take route 117 to 495, and just after the light at the junction of 111, there’s a huge hill. If you get stuck behind a dumptruck that was stopped for the light there, you’re dead. It’s been a dumptruck on the hill week for me.
