PHOENIX — Jim Atkinson finally is going to get a chance to tell those single motorists in the carpool lane exactly what he has been mumbling at them under his breath for years.
Move over, dummy.
Well, not exactly in those words.
But Atkinson is one of two winners chosen by the state Department of Transportation to have their safety messages placed on freeway signs. So don’t be surprised if you see one that says, “Single in HOV? Get a real date not a court date.” That will be on signs in the Phoenix area on Monday.
He said it addresses a frustration he experiences daily when driving the Loop 101 freeway in the Phoenix area.
“Everybody’s just trying to commute every single day to get there on time,” Atkinson said. His message is aimed at “people who just think that maybe they’re just a little bit better than others.”
And if suggestions to do the right thing aren’t enough, Atkinson’s message reminds them of that $400 minimum fine. And that’s before various surcharges that can push the price tag above $600.
“Hopefully, people will look up and look over — and realize I’m talking to them,” Atkinson said.
For Ashley Servatius, the other winner, her entry was less personal: “That’s the temperature — not the speed limit.” Her sign will be up on freeways through the weekend.
“This was an inside joke,” she explained, saying a friend driving with her saw the thermometer on her dashboard register 101 “and thought I was driving that fast.”
“I wasn’t speeding,” Servatius quickly added. “She thought I was.”
The contest began in early February with ADOT seeking suggestions.
Entries, by necessity, had to be short and simple: The freeway signs accommodate just three lines of 18 characters each. Spokesman Doug Pacey said 3,500 entries came in the first day alone.
What Atkinson and Servatius get for their entries is the glory: a certificate from ADOT and knowing they are the authors of messages above the freeways. There’s no money involved.
