Citizen Y: Super Commuter

I’m heading downtown for a lunch meeting, sitting third in line in the left turn lane when it occurs to me that I’ve been sitting in that turn lane for a long time.  The lights have cycled and we haven’t moved. 

What’s up? 

The culprit is straight ahead:  the left-turn green arrow is not working.  Red light is on, then only a black space where a green arrow should be.  Like little birds at the edge of a nest, eventually each front car in turn figures it out and screeches into the intersection when it’s yellow. 

But it’s a busy street, so one car at a time means a long wait—I steal my kid’s juice box and dig out a granola bar lodged between the carseats. 

But wait!  I’m hungry, but not powerless!  Not moving?  Might as well grab the phone and power up the YourGOV app to send this one in!  It finds my location, I note the issue, and hit submit! 

This app is starting to give me a Superman complex.  How many commuters will unwittingly continue about their day not knowing that they have been saved from left-turn lane purgatory where there is only a red light and then nothing?