Virginia Paints Zig-Zag Lines On Roads To Reduce Speed

Call us old-fashioned but when we're concentrating on the road an unncessary distraction is the last thing we want. So why is Virginia painting crooked lines on the road on purpose?

The Virginia Department of Transportation says it's part of a safety campaign to get drivers to slow down in a high pedestrian and bicycle area.

The 500 feet of zig-zagging lines have already been painted on the ground on Belmont Ridge Road, where it intersects with the Washington and Old Dominion trail in Loudoun County.

"It is a low cost strategy to get motorists to slow down as they approach the bike trail and pedestrian path," says Mike Salmon of the department of transportation.

"While at first motorists may be a little disoriented, the main point is to get them to pay attention and slow down through that area."

There are also plans to paint the strange lines on other roads. The transportation agency plans to then study the zig-zagging lines for a year and see if they actually reduce speeds.

If the lines prove effective, you can expect to see even more of them on the roads -- including other states.

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