Sat cooling my heels the other day while the Virginia Department of Transportation painted lines along the side of new pavement on U.S. 221 south of Willis.

They managed to let cars back up for a full 15 minutes before letting them through. An even-longer line waited at the other end in the northbound lane.

I’m not a highway engineer but there must be a better way to do this. When you get stopped in a long line that includes four or five 18-wheel trucks, the progress will be slow as hell once the traffic starts moving again. I stayed stuck behind one until it turned off on Rte. 100 just outside Hillsville.

In most major metro areas, VDOT does this kind of work at night when traffic is lighter. Why not do the same here?