Main Street between Tenth and Eleventh streets in Pennsburg is now open.  The intersection at Portzer Road and Old Bethlehem Pike in Milford Township is now open.

            Know the laws, obey the laws, and drive safely.

            If you're traveling east on Eleventh Street from the area of the Upper Perkiomen High School, note that the "No Turn on Red" sign is back up and in effect.  Too many vehicles are still drifting through the intersection while not paying attention to the sign or to the traffic coming on Main Street.

            The temporary traffic lights are still operating at Eleventh Street and Montgomery Avenue and Eighth Street and Montgomery Avenue in Pennsburg.  If you're traveling north or south on Montgomery Avenue and if you're looking at a red light, you must stop.

            Traveling west on Eighth or Eleventh, you can still "turn right on red" with caution AND after stopping.

            The traffic light will come down at some point in the future but, for now, they are still there and still in operation.

            Please use caution at the new roundabout connecting Portzer Road and Old Bethlehem Pike.  One trip through there will let you know that many drivers don't know the meaning of a "Yield Sign" or they're in too much of a hurry to care.

            If you're facing a Yield Sign, give way to the traffic coming through.  Proceed when it is safe for you to enter the roundabout.  And, yes, please do use your turn signals.

            Roadway and highway improvements can add convenience to us but if we insist on unsafe driving we risk our own and the lives of others.

            Where once traffic slowed under the burden of construction, drivers now feel the freedom to put the pedal to the metal and ignore basic driver safety rules, in addition to traffic laws.

            There are many other upgrades to area roads that seem to have lulled some drivers into a sense of being infallible while behind the wheel. 

            Another good example of recent and ongoing improvements is the Pennsylvania Turnpike.  Just below the Quakertown Toll Plaza, where the highway shifts from four lanes to six, there is a long stretch where you can be driving the speed limit in the right lane and have vehicle after vehicle pass you in the center and left lanes.  The speed of some of them borders on insane and tailgating that goes on at those speeds is a recipe for a crash.

            Make it a point during this holiday season to take extra care while driving.  Then take that practice and use it throughout the year.

            Drive safe and stay safe.