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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
Harrisonburg, Va.
Contractors View Safety On I-81 As More Than A Job By IAN MUNRO Daily News-Record
For Glen Rutherford, the sign he’s doing a good job means that no one can tell he’s been to a spot at all. “The goal is to keep the road clean and the public safe,” Rutherford, 50, of Front Royal, said behind the wheel of a Ford truck as the early morning sun started to scatter the clouds. Rutherford works for DBi, a contracting firm that helps the Virginia Department of Transportation keep traffic rolling down Interstate 81 as smoothly and securely as possible. “It’s ever-changing. All day long. You think you’re doing the same thing every day, but there are small variables in there that change up every day,” Rutherford said. The crews also help address crashes, including fatalities, which are the hardest, he said. And for Rutherford and the
Medicare
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company, not directly from the government. When you turn age 65, you will have the right to enroll in one of several Medicare-approved Part D prescription drug plans. Medicare pays most of the cost of Part D. However, if you choose Part D, you will pay a monthly premium to the company you select.
Supplementing your coverage
Medicare alone is not likely to be enough. To help minimize out-of-pocket expenses, many retirees have some other arrangement to supplement Medicare’s coverage. Some options include: Fo r m e r e m p l o y e r health insurance – Your former employer may let you carry its group health plan into retirement. If you are retired and eligible for Medicare, your employer’s group
other local DBi workers, reducing such occurrences is more than just clocking hours. The DBi crews first meet around 7:30 a.m. for a meeting and then split up and head out for the first drive of their day through their watch zone. Rutherford patrols a 70mile loop through Shenandoah County on I-81 along with Jeff Gineris, 49, of Woodstock. Other crews patrol other areas, such as Frederick and Warren counties led by Len Winnings, 73, of West Virginia. Winnings said he does a 100-mile loop, which along with other tasks for I-81 safety, racks up about 60,000 miles a year on a truck. And each day brings new challenges that can come on suddenly, they said. “A mile up the road, the whole day can change,” Rutherford said. “It’s very unpredictable.” n the first drive, they space
themselves apart and make note of what needs to be done — sign adjustments, guardrail repair, roadkill removal and debris disposal, among a variety of duties. “It’s the same stretch of road, but constantly changing scenarios,” Rutherford said. Such as recently, when a tree fell and hit a tractor-trailer, injuring the driver, Rutherford said. On routes, DBi workers like Rutherford remain alert, radio switched off, because sometimes there are issues they come across that need to be immediately addressed, such as a large object in the middle of the roadway, which could cause drivers to swerve into each other or off the road, he said. And sometimes this requires workers to step into a lane, if even for a moment, at any time of the day. “You’ve got to keep your head on a swivel out here, pay
health plan is your Medicare supplement. Medigap insurance – Medigap is supplemental health insurance you buy from a private insurance company to fill in some of the gaps in Part A and Part B. Medigap policies pay some or all of Medicare’s deductibles and co-payments, and some cover a few services that Medicare doesn’t. Medicare Advantage Part C – Part C is not a true Medicare supplement because it replaces Medicare’s coverage. But if you have Part C, you will not need a Medicare supplement. This article contains basic information about Medicare, services related to Medicare and services for people with Medicare. If you would like to find more information about the government Medicare program, please visit the official U.S. government site at medicare.gov. Wells Fargo Advisors
does not provide legal, tax or accounting advice, but your financial adviser will be happy to work with your chosen legal and tax advisers to help you achieve your financial goals. Insurance products are offered through nonbank insurance agency affiliates of Wells Fargo & Co. and are underwritten by unaffiliated insurance companies. This article was written by/for Wells Fargo Advisors and provided courtesy of Matthew Frakes, financial adviser in Harrisonburg at (540) 801-3211. Investments in securities and insurance products are: NOT FDIC-INSURED/ NOT BANK- GUARANTEED/ MAY LOSE VALUE Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Member SIPC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company.
attention all the way around you,” Rutherford said. He said DBi and VDOT workers, the VDOT Safety Service Patrol, tow-truck operators and Virginia State Police all work hand in hand and have solid communication between each other to address issues. fter their first lap in the morning, they’ll meet back up — these crews at a VDOT and DBi work yard just off Exit 298 to Strasburg — grab the tools and maybe special vehicles they’ll need, and then head back out, remaining vigilant for any immediate issues. The most common problems are litter, debris and dead animals, Rutherford said. “Picking up litter drives us nuts, man,” Winnings said. “People throwing junk out the window, losing stuff off their vehicles.” Winnings has been with the company for a decade and said he can still be surprised by the
things they find. He and coworker Cody Darr, 24, of Middletown, cleared a swing set from I-81 two weeks ago, Winnings said. Certain problems tend to appear in certain seasons, such as more tires blown in summer’s sweltering heat and more bucks struck by vehicles in late fall and early winter during mating season, according to Rutherford. And sometimes, local DBi workers come across household pets. Rutherford described one day where he found a dead cat. Later on, while working near a fence line, he was approached by a couple of farmers clearly looking for something. When the farmer asked about a cat, Rutherford’s heart sank as it matched the description of the one he had loaded into a trailer for disposal. “You could see the air go out of the old man,” he said, add-
ing that upon request from the owner, he reunited the cat’s remains with him. The most common animals crews have to dispose of include deer, squirrels, raccoons and possums, though crows and falcons are not too rare. It is unusual to come across bears, which stink the most, according to Winnings and Rutherford. Other issues are year-round, such as guardrails needing repair that are often only identified by Bi or patrols since many crashes that cause the damage go unreported, according to Rutherford. But the nonstop nature of keeping traffic on - rolling and the infrastructure solid doesn’t rattle Rutherford. “I like to think of it as doing my part,” Rutherford said. Contact Ian Munro at 574-6278 or imunro@dnronline.com. Follow Ian on Twitter @iamIanMunro
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