Monday, May 03, 1999
Messages often leave drivers in the dark
After one year, readers say ARTIMIS falls short
BY EARNEST WINSTON and LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Tristate commuters beware...
![[artimis]](/editions/1999/05/03/artimis_180x119.jpg)
ARTIMIS operations supervisor Linda Roll consults with operators Leo Neiheisel, left, and Ahmad Saleh, center, as they monitor traffic.
(Glenn Hartong photo)
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Today is the first morning commute since the closure of westbound Fort Washington Way.
That said, you have those big ARTIMIS message signs to guide you through the tangle of rush-hour traffic, right?
Wrong.
Of the 116 people who responded to an Enquirer reader survey, 62 rated ARTIMIS signs “not effective” and didn't have much use for them.
Frank Gettelfinger of Fort Mitchell said drivers won't count on them to make commuting easier now that westbound Fort Washington Way is closed for the summer.
He said the signs would work better if there were a flashing light a quarter-mile ahead to alert drivers to an important message.
“Otherwise you're driving along fat, dumb and happy, and there's a bulletin coming up,” he said. “You've got to have time to read it, and there isn't much time to do that.”
Drivers who dislike the signs really dislike them. A number of surveys included comments like this:
“I think most people just tune into the radio to find out if there are any accidents, delays or other road problems either before they hit the highway or as they are traveling the highway,” wrote Toni McHugh of Deer Park. “Just for the record...THEY WERE A BIG WASTE OF MONEY!!!”
Don Thalheimer of Norwood also was uneasy about the money spent on ARTIMIS, but the signs have helped him from being stuck in “big traffic ... I was skeptical in the beginning — another taxpayer expenditure — but I'm very impressed with it.”
Some readers also complained that ARTIMIS often lacks messages about alternate routes when there is congestion, leaving them to find their own way if they abandon the interstates.
Many readers who responded to the Enquirer survey complained that drivers tend to slow down to read messages, adding to traffic troubles that signs are designed to ease.
“Traffic comes to a crawl to read them,” Jay Hamm of Mount Carmel wrote. “I was delayed about 10 minutes for "smog alert' (messages) last summer.”
Linda Roll, who has final say over ARTIMIS messages, conceded that drivers slow down to read the bulletins but insisted the data are worth it.
Electronic signs are part of the ARTIMIS system that cost $37 million to plan, build and inaugurate.
That money ran out in September 1998.
Since October, however, taxpayers have been picking up an annual fee of about $4 million to maintain and staff ARTIMIS, says Leon Walden, an engineer in the Kentucky transportation cabinet.
The project is mostly funded by federal Congestion Mitigation Air Quality funds, as well the Ohio and Kentucky transportation departments.
Other readers also blasted the expense as too high for too little, but message signs have fans.
“I always look out to see if there is a message,” said Mary Jordan, a retired teacher from Silverton. “It's helpful to me to know what's ahead of me before I get there.”
In her survey reply, Pim Kremerof Forest Park said she avoided an accident-related delay thanks to the signs. “I was able to get off at Smith Road and avoided a long wait.”
The signs are installed on 88 miles of interstates in Northern Kentucky and the Cincinnati area.
Those locations left Douglas Katchen of Clifton unhappy. He said signs tend to be located where motor ists enter the Cincinnati area from the suburbs, and do not help city drivers.
“On I-75 going south, for example, if you enter ... at Roselawn or at the University of Cincinnati, the first sign you come to going south is almost downtown,” Mr. Katchen, a business manager, complained. “Right now, downtown is where I-75 and I-71 are most likely to have traffic problems due to Fort Washington Way.”
Most people responding to the Enquirer survey knew of the 211 SmarTraveler phone number for current road information, but many said 211 was helpful only for drivers with cell phones.
Many readers also said the signs should not display a message when there is no significant traffic information to report, but others said ARTIMIS should always display some message as do some cities.
Tim Schoch, spokesman for ARTIMIS, said Enquirer reader responses will be helpful.
“We want to provide information that's credible — that can add to their motoring experience in that it will make it more efficient, save time and get them from point A to point B in a safe and efficient manner.”
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GET TO IT
TRISTATE DIGEST
![[artimis]](/editions/1999/05/03/artimis_550x365.jpg)
