Now that another summer has officially begun, the roads and highways will be packed full of travelers and tourists alike, added to our local users who work, live and play throughout our state.

With this added burden to our constantly growing roadway congestion and rush-hour anxiety, why do the powers that be decide to start their construction now?

Everywhere you drive now you see those bright orange signs warning of an impending “work area” or “detour” ahead, and with those signs you also see bumper-to-bumper traffic.

I live in central Biddeford where recently they’ve begun sewer work on Route 1 (Elm Street) and adjoining streets. So what do they do? They take already congested side roads that can barely fit one-way traffic now and open them up to two-way traffic to avoid congestion on Route 1.

Let’s take an already busy route, partially close parts of the road like it’s an obstacle course and detour drivers down a maze of side roads.

If any of you have driven through Biddeford during the week near rush hour, or during special events such as La Kermesse, you will note that, added with the lights and crosswalks, the route tries your patience at best and adds minutes to your travel time at worst.

On a good day during early spring or the fall, my commute time to work in Portland is roughly 20 minutes. During the summer season, it jumps near 25 to 30 minutes. Add construction on top of that and you get around 45 minutes.

Why do they choose the busiest time of the year to do road construction? Matter of fact, why do they only seem to do construction, line-painting and cleanup during late spring and summer when the roadway usage begins to increase as more and more travelers are using them?

Antonio Giarratano

Biddeford