Ring around the roundabout
Cruising into Road Town on Monday morning, a Beaconite noticed a few freshly painted arrows around the capital’s historic roundabout. But he is frankly unsure how to feel about government’s latest attempt at managing traffic around town. On one hand, he’s happy to see that Road Town’s traffic laws aren’t completely out to pasture. On the other, the paintjob possesses the characteristics of yet another Band-Aid slapped onto Virgin Islands roads. Alarmingly, the roundabout’s interior lane now features a forked arrow, presumably giving motorists the go-ahead to choose between exiting or continuing in the roundabout. The problem lies in the outside lane: If a motorist from the interior lane chooses to exit, the driver traveling in the outside lane must yield to the exiting car. But there is no dividing line between the lanes, nor is there any signage informing the outside car that it must exit. This creates a scenario where an inside driver may want to exit, but a driver traveling in the outside lane is not informed that they must exit as well. A collision could result. Before the arrival of the forked arrow, drivers had to either gun for a gap or give way to fellow drivers. But the new half-measure — giving the inside lane the right to exit without requiring the same of the outside lane — seems likely to cause more accidents than it seeks to avoid. And when such an accident does happen, which driver will be found at fault? The Beaconite has no idea, and he can’t imagine that police do either.
Stinky sea
A Beaconite was enjoying a beautiful evening sunset on the beach at Cane Garden Bay on Saturday. Then the smell of sewage kicked in. Any romantic thoughts about a dip at dusk disappeared with the rise of the smell from the otherwise enticingly serene bay. He hopes the government will redouble efforts to complete long-delayed pipework following a recent contract signing. Officials, after all, have promised a “comprehensive overhaul” of the sewerage system in the village. This work can’t come soon enough. When residents have to fear swimming in one of the most sumptuous seas in the world, there is clearly a problem.
Well read
Books, books, books. As someone who writes for a living, it is likely no surprise to anyone that a Beaconite loves to read. True, sometimes she finds herself too tired after a long day of work, which oftentimes includes a lot of reading, to pick up a book and read for her own personal enjoyment. But nevertheless, she enjoys a good book. Her bank account, on the other hand, does not. That is why she is always on the lookout for cheap, used books for sale in the Virgin Islands. Recently, she was successful in getting some good finds. She learned from a local group chat that someone was selling a selection of used books at the affordable price of $5 each. It was when she had picked up and paid for her choices that she learned the seller was moving and was doing some cleaning-out in the process. This came as no surprise, as she finds often good deals on various items from people who are in the process of moving house. These deals, as most residents are surely aware, usually go quickly, so it is best to grab them as fast as possible.