Output Stream of Consciousness

Just a small rant this time.

Construction speed zone signs. Definitely saw, this weekend, an utter lack of respect for them.

Was it, however, a deserved lack of respect?

Construction zones that take down the maximum speed by 30, even 60 km/h are common, especially in the current season (as someone once quipped, 'There are four seasons in Canada: Before Winter, Winter, After Winter and Construction').

The speed signs aren't covered up when construction crews leave for the weekend. This has led to a lack of respect for the signs. In a strange misunderstanding of the problem, a campaign happened a while back, with smarmy "Please slow down... my dad/grandfather works here" billboards with cute pictures of children... often in the aforementioned zones without a construction worker in sight for days (Memorial Drive was particularly bad for this).

If you want people to respect construction zones, make them mean something at all times. Otherwise, it's like telling people to sit quietly at a party even while nobody's speaking - they have a right to wonder why. Construction zones are to protect workers from high speed cars, and occasionally to warn about fresh oil on the road. If there are no workers and no oil... why are they still there?