There are few things that enrage me quite like Richmond-area traffic lights.

The ones within the city limits seem to work inconsistently. Some days I can fly through intersections and arrive at my destination in no time. Then again, once a week I spend three full minutes sitting at the light at Belvidere and Spring streets … even though I've never, ever, seen anyone needing to turn using this light.

Then there are the lights in Chesterfield County … which one can hardly call inconsistent. If one thing is certain about traffic lights south of the river it's that you will always get caught in every single one of them.

And then there's Henrico County. I'm sure that I'm not the only Richmonder who has noticed that the traffic lights that guide one east or west down Broad Street work like pure poetry. One can travel Broad Street through Henrico County and, not only never stop at a light, but can turn off of Broad Street in one light cycle. Pretty amazing, huh (interestingly, these are some of the only lights in the area managed by VDOT).

But enough about Richmond traffic light eccentricities, we've got "Why Richmond, Why?!?" questions to answer.

Why do the traffic lights downtown seem so poorly timed? In previous cities I have lived in, it is usually possible to drive at or around the speed limit on major thoroughfares, unimpeded for quite sometime. This is due to the timing and coordinated changing of lights. In Richmond, driving down Broad Street near downtown until the I-195 area usually requires stopping at a ridiculous number of lights.

-- Robert

Jemila Woodson, with the City of Richmond Department of Public Works, answers:

Traveling Broad Street in Richmond usually includes many stops, as this is one of the busiest roadways in the city. Please keep in mind there are other Richmond roads that you can typically travel significant distances with relatively few stops.  Some of these streets you could use as an alternative include Franklin Street, Grace Street, Main Street and Cary Street between downtown and the Fan. The difference between the two is one-way street signals can be coordinated much more effectively than two-way street signals. This is because only one direction of traffic needs to be coordinated with one-way streets. With two-way streets, depending on factors such as the spacing and frequency of signals, it often is impossible to provide coordination in both directions.

Just to round out the upscale grocery store questions, any word on an opening date for The Fresh Market on Huguenot?

-- Matthew

Catherine Ogle, with KC Public Relations, answers:

The Fresh Market store located at 1200 Huguenot Road in Midlothian, VA is scheduled to open in November 2008. 

This may be more of a rant, but when driving north on 2nd street towards downtown, specifically between Cary and Franklin streets, there are "No Parking between 7 to 9 a.m." signs posted for the right lane. I take this route every morning and half of the time there are a couple of cars parked in the right lane. I recognize the same cars that do this repeatedly. Often this causes an unnecessary traffic backup or some unfortunate commuter gets stuck in the right lane behind one of these violators. Why is this not enforced?

-- Hank

Jemila Woodson answers again:

The city contracts parking enforcement officers to actively and routinely ticket vehicles in the areas you identified.  ‘Parking Ambassadors’ routinely patrol Cary Street and Broad Street east of the Boulevard and Franklin Street east of Lombardy Street from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. 

Parking Management Officials recently surveyed this parking situation to determine the effect of parking violators on traffic flow in the area. They were able to conclude traffic moved smoothly throughout the route. The volume on the streets in question was manageable, and the eastern blocks (closer to downtown) have fewer violators. Because there are fewer violators here, turning lanes remain open, allowing a smooth flow in the center lanes. Parking officials also recognized there are more repeat violators when VCU is in regular session, and downtown traffic is a bit more congested.They plan to re-evaluate parking enforcement plans when VCU’s fall semester begins this year, to determine if a more aggressive towing plan is required.

So what do you want to know, Richmond? Send questions to: karri.peifer@corp.richmond.com with "Why Richmond, Why?!?" in the subject line or leave your question in the comments sections below. And if you missed last week's "Why Richmond, Why?", just click this link to read it.