Friday, December 16, 2005
Orange Cone Industry Continues to Thrive
I was just thinking on my walk into work this morning about a satirical headline that would aptly capture one of the "little differences" about New Zealand: specifically referring to the sheer number of orange reflective cones found alongside our highways, byways, and driveways. It is difficult to walk for more than a couple of hundred metres in any direction in this country without encountering the buggers, all neatly lined up, forcing pedestrians off the sidewalk and warning the passing motorist of ... well, usually nothing.
The orange cone industry seems so much more active than the actual construction industry ... on the highways one might drive alongside 3km of orange cones on both sides, merely to pass 20m of construction or (more likely) nothing at all. The bastards are everywhere. Students don't even bother stealing them anymore, they're so ubiquitous.
They may also be accompanied by speed traps, as at the start of the "orange cone parade" they'll have a sign up saying "Road works: slow to 30" or whatever, and after a couple of minutes of crawling along and seeing absolutely nothing going on, you speed up a bit and get nailed by a cop. Ever noticed the frequency with which the "30kmh" signs are left behind once the "work" is done to rust on the side of the highway? You're never sure whether to slow down or not, although I doubt the cops care that there hasn't been construction in that area since the Ministry of Works spent 4 months repaving 500 metres of one lane in 1983. They're also left out overnight when there's no work being done. Bastards.
The orange cone industry seems so much more active than the actual construction industry ... on the highways one might drive alongside 3km of orange cones on both sides, merely to pass 20m of construction or (more likely) nothing at all. The bastards are everywhere. Students don't even bother stealing them anymore, they're so ubiquitous.
They may also be accompanied by speed traps, as at the start of the "orange cone parade" they'll have a sign up saying "Road works: slow to 30" or whatever, and after a couple of minutes of crawling along and seeing absolutely nothing going on, you speed up a bit and get nailed by a cop. Ever noticed the frequency with which the "30kmh" signs are left behind once the "work" is done to rust on the side of the highway? You're never sure whether to slow down or not, although I doubt the cops care that there hasn't been construction in that area since the Ministry of Works spent 4 months repaving 500 metres of one lane in 1983. They're also left out overnight when there's no work being done. Bastards.
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