Mequon Clog: The Blog of the Clog!

On the way out this morning and going across Mequon Rd several times, I noticed that the work from last night left a 3-4 inch drop as one crosses from the north side of the road into the medians. Only an approximate 2 inch increase coming out onto the south side of Mequon Rd.

Going only about 2 mph, I ran into the issue that my car didn't want to go up the 3-4 inch abrupt increase on the way back home. Once I gave it enough gas to get over the ridge, the back tires slammed hard into that ridge -- again, I was only moving a few mph.

It appears that this road difference exists for many blocks along the road. Nothing marking the ridge and no gravel to smooth it out. This isn't being "in a hurry in a fancy car on the cell phone" on my part but simply the lack of common sense on the development plan.

Towards the beginning of the school year, the sidewalk repair group worked on high-traffic areas to increase safety. Unfortunately, the clean-up crew has not come afterwards to fill in the gaps around these repairs. The area around the construction is mostly residential. That means families. That means kids. As much as we can give directions to our children to stay on the sidewalks, they like to walk ahead a bit or in groups. In the evening hours, the lack of light only exacerbates the problem. The photo to the right is where a friend's 3 yr old daughter fell into. Fortunately, she was not hurt, just scared. You can see that the weeds have grown to obscure the danger.

As the leaves fall, the problem will only become more hidden. As the snow falls, we can expect to face major trenches of water buildup in the Spring.

Addition to this posting: The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal published an expanded story of this situation Oct. 26th.
Addition: Mike Nichols posts refers to his own experience with the lack of clear construction markerings.
Addition: National Attention on ABC News

The MequonNow.com site posted an article about 10 motorists getting stuck in wet concrete. How can 10 people be so dumb as to drive into wet concrete?! After all, it surely must have been delineated with blinking lights and tape!

Obviously, those who live near Mequon Rd know better. The concern for public safety does not exist. It took nearly two weeks to put a little ramp at the two gigantic bumps at Port and MequonRd. When driving west on Mequon Rd from Port, I'm often left driving on the curb extension because the barrels are sporadically so far into the road. And judging from what I just read, if I accidentally hit one, I'll be facing a ticket!

I heard of two people last week that tripped while walking at night due to the extreme lack of safety markings. Fortunately, nothing major happened.

I don't understand how this project gets away with repeatedly creating safety problems and not properly delineating them. When the side roads north of Mequon Road were repaved last summer, all of the barricades had the yellow blinking lights on top. If that was done for side roads, wouldn't it make more sense to be doing it for high-traffic work?!

This sidewalk section with the drop into the mud is not marked. The rains of last week have made it even difficult to get around on the grass. With the beginning of the school year, I feel sorry for the hazards that our children will face on their way to Homestead, the school on Range Line, or any other school in the area. Take the other side? That won't work since you'll encounter the same there too! Brilliant!

Yes, this was in the construction area, but as you'll see from another photo, it is right by a sidewalk that is closed and causes one to walk in that section. Great thing for kids to play with!

This photo is at the intersection of N Crown Ct. and Mequon Rd., the only access to the Agudas Achim Synagogue and the Mequon Jewish Preschool.