Residents weigh in on rumble strip issue

BELMONT — Joe Rolfe is in perfect position to witness drivers on New Hampshire Route 106 and he’s all in favor of the installation of rumble strips to alert motorists when they are drifting out of their lane.

He runs a pick-your-own apple orchard at 522 Laconia Road. His home is on the side of the busy highway.

“At the farm, there have been a number of cars that drifted off the road and hit our porch, ended up in the ditch or hit the power pole,” he said Wednesday. “There have been several incidents for no apparent reason other than that they are distracted.”

Nine people have died in traffic accidents on the highway over the last two years, many in head-on accidents in which a vehicle crossed over into oncoming traffic.

One concern about rumble strips is that they can lead to excess noise for residents near highways, although a new type of strip being considered for installation on Route 106 is quieter than previous versions.

Rolfe said any extra noise would be short lived and would not be a concern for him. He said the strips are effective.

“They work,” he said. “They bring your attention back quick.”

At The Vault Hair Studio in Belmont on Wednesday, the consensus was that any noise from rumble strips would be preferable to the noise of a traffic accident.

“Something’s got to be done,” said Terri Pike, of Belmont, as she was getting her hair done. “At least trying it is better than nothing.”

At the Super Clean Coin-op Laundry in Belmont, sentiment was also trending in support of the rumble strips.

“I think that anything for safety is good,” said Ted Hyslop, of Laconia, who frequently drives on Route 106. “I think driver education might be a good thing as well.

“Whatever you can do to save a life is an important thing. You can’t put a price tag on that.”

While she was loading clothes in a washing machine, Mary Scott, of Alton, said she favors rumble strips, but also wishes people would decrease their speed and pay more attention to their driving.

“Half the people that we see driving up and down there either have their phone in their ear or you can see them looking down in their lap at their phone,” she said. “It’s obvious what they are doing and they tend to drive on the center of the road anyway.”

State Rep. Ray Howard Jr., R-Alton, said in a letter to the editor last summer that rumble strips installed on Route 28 in Alton have been a noisy distraction.

“Attention residents of RT 106 – it sounds like the State (DOT) Department of Transportation is considering forcing you to pay for the poor driving habits of some people traveling our scenic highways,” he wrote. “Or, is it that state and local law enforcement are inept to enforcing the law? It really does not matter who's at fault because you, the people who live on or near RT 106 will pay the price with sleepless nights and loss of resale property values.

“So, if you like sleeping through the night with a cool summer breeze coming through your open window prepare now to take a stand against DOT ruining your Life, Liberty and your pursuit of happiness."