Utah has four seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter,
and road construction. We’re in the middle of the road construction. These past
few days I’ve driven on several freshly paved roads that don’t have lines
painted on yet. It’s very disorienting, and weird to remember that before the
turn of the last century, this is how all paved roads looked. According to the
story, one day in 1911 Edward Hines, chairman of the Wayne County Board of
Roads in Michigan, was driving behind a leaky milk truck. He noticed the steady
stream of milk “painting” the road, and had an epiphany. He imagined a line painted
down the center of the road would in no way impede traffic, but might reduce
accidents. A contemporary of Hines’ – Dr. June McCarroll of California – claimed
to have the same idea after she was nearly hit by a truck. But she didn’t have
a leaky milk truck story.
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