JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO, Texas –
Joint Base San Antonio safety specialists are emphasizing a patient and calm approach to driving as members of the JBSA community enter their locations during gate closures that are expected for the first three months of 2019.
The Jadwin Gate at JBSA-Fort Sam Houston and the main gate at JBSA-Randolph, recently renamed the Lindsey Gate, closed Jan. 7 and the Valley Hi Gate at JBSA-Lackland is scheduled to close Jan. 21 for construction projects to enhance force protection capability.
“Do your best to practice patience,” said Vernon Vinson, JBSA-Randolph occupational safety specialist. “If you’ve been sitting in line to get on the installation for 15 minutes, what’s an additional five? Also, don’t take actions that would jeopardize your safety, or the safety of others, to gain 10 seconds.”
Such actions include cutting across traffic to enter into another lane, making an illegal and unsafe U-turn and, specifically at JBSA-Randolph, not exercising caution at the Pat Booker Road-FM 78 railroad crossing, he said.
Vinson encouraged motorists to stay calm while they are waiting to enter their locations.
“We understand it is irritating to sit in a line to get to work, but remain calm because you will get to your work center,” he said. “You are not alone; everyone is experiencing the same inconveniences as you.”
Terry Todd, JBSA-Lackland occupational safety manager, also encouraged patience during the gate closures.
“Raising your stress or anger level over something you have no control of will not get you to work faster,” he said. “Patience is extremely important as impatience could lead to cases of road rage.”
Safety specialists addressed the common problem of congestion on roads leading to all JBSA locations and issues that are unique to those locations during the gate closures.
“Gate closures for JBSA-Fort Sam Houston can mean added entry time as certain days are busier than others,” said Algernon Johnson, JBSA-Fort Sam Houston occupational safety and health specialist. “Vehicle traffic may extend to the traffic lights on Walters Street, causing an impact to the southbound exit lane of Interstate 35 and the northbound exit lane of Interstate 35 that leads to the Walters entry control point of JBSA-Fort Sam Houston.”
Todd said the biggest traffic issue facing JBSA-Lackland are the long lines of traffic attempting to enter the location.
“These long lines will reach outside the base perimeter and on to local highways such as Loop 410 and Highway 90 as well as the frontage roads,” he said. “Although traffic planners have done their best to come up with the best possible courses of action to help eliminate delays, there’s always going to be the unforeseen/unexpected issue that may arise and the best-laid plan has to be readjusted.”
Vinson pinpointed three areas of concern at JBSA-Randolph, starting with the Pat Booker Road-FM 78 railroad crossing, where vehicles on Pat Booker Road may stack up to catch the light to turn either left or right onto FM 78.
“Trains can take up to one full mile to stop, depending on their speed,” he said. “Being caught between two other vehicles and being on the tracks with a train coming would increase the chances of a possible fatal accident. Please do not take any unnecessary risks just to save or gain a few minutes.”
Another problem are vehicles making U-turns in front of the Lindsey Gate to get a more advantageous approach to enter a less congested gate, Vinson said.
“Universal City, Schertz and Converse police departments have all been on the lookout for these actions around JBSA-Randolph,” he said. “Personnel involved in a side-impact crash are more likely to be seriously injured, or possibly killed, at much lower speeds than other impacts due to the lack of internal safety devices offered in current vehicles.”
Vinson also noted a traffic issue at the South Gate and Lower Seguin Road, where vehicles may try to use the shoulder to pass stacked vehicles awaiting entry into JBSA-Randolph.
“Pay close attention to your right side and ensure you look twice before exiting the line of stacked vehicles, if applicable,” he said.
Planning also plays an important role for motorists during the gate closures.
“Plan to leave your residence at an appropriate time to arrive safely to work,” Johnson said. “Another alternative is to adjust your work schedule start and end time to aid in alleviating traffic congestion.”
Another aspect of planning is having the proper credentials before entry, Vinson said.
“At JBSA-Randolph, security forces personnel have advised that personnel who arrive at any of the gates and do not have the proper credentials will be held until incoming traffic is at such a level that they can be allowed to leave safely and return home to gather their credentials,” he said.
Improvements to infrastructure typically come with some type of struggle, Todd said.
“In this case, the struggle will be traffic delays, so keep calm and remain cool because in time these projects will end.”