C180 PLT HS PROB WITH VISIBILITY OF SIGN AND LACK OF TXWY LINES ON TXWY CONVERTED FROM JOINT ROAD TXWY. WINGTIP HITS PARKED ACFT.

Narrative

WHILE TAXIING A CESSNA 180 I APCHED A PORTION OF TXWY THAT HAD BEEN CHANGED RECENTLY. IT USED TO BE AN INTXN THAT BOTH CARS AND AIRPLANES USED BUT HAS BEEN IMPROVED TO JUST ACFT. STOP SIGNS AND OTHER AUTOMOBILE TFC SIGNS HAVE BEEN REMOVED AND CLRED FOR ACFT; AND AN ACFT ONLY HAD BEEN INSTALLED. ON THE OUTSIDE OF A CURVE IN TXWY WHEN APCHING; THE SIGN WAS NOT SEEN OVER THE COWLING ON THE ACFT. WHEN A COPLT SAW THE ACFT HDG FOR THE SIGN HE WARNED ME TO STEER R. DUE TO PATCHES OF ICE ON DRY PAVEMENT; WHEN THE BRAKES WERE APPLIED; THE R TIRE BRAKED ON DRY PAVEMENT; CAUSING THE PLANE TO LOOP AROUND 180 DEGS. THE L WINGTIP STRUCK AC206 PROP ON FLOATS PARKED ALONG THE TXWY. THE ACCIDENT WAS CAUSED BY POOR TXWY PAINTING LINES; A SHARP CURVE IN TXWY; POOR LOCATION OF SIGN FOR VISIBILITY TO TAIL DRAGGERS; ICY CONDITIONS; AND CONFUSING TXWY AREA. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATES THAT THE PARKED PLANE WAS IN A PROPER TIE-DOWN AREA BEHIND THE RED LINE ON THE EDGE OF THE TXWY. THE MAIN PROB IS THAT THERE IS A HUMP ON THE TXWY WHERE THE FORMER ROAD WAS CROWNED AND WHERE IT INTERSECTS WITH THE TXWY. THERE ARE TXWY LINES PAINTED UP TO THAT POINT BUT THEN THE LINES STOP. FOR A TAIL DRAGGER ACFT THESE LINES ARE VERY IMPORTANT SINCE THE PLT CANNOT SEE OVER THE NOSE OF THE ACFT. THEY ZIG- ZAG AND MONITOR THE LINES TO DETERMINE CTRLINE POS. ONE CANNOT SEE THE SIGN AT THIS POINT IN THE TXWY; IT IS TOO LOW. RPTR SUGGESTIONS ARE TO MOVE THE SIGN TO A POINT WHERE IT IS VISIBLE TO TAXIING TFC INCLUDING TAIL DRAGGERS; AND THEN REMOVE THE HUMP IN THE TXWY ITSELF SO THE NOSE IS NOT SO HIGH THAT IT ELIMINATES ANY POSSIBILITY OF SEEING THE SIGN. THE SIGN ITSELF HAS BEEN HIT SINCE THIS INCIDENT AND RPTR FEELS IT IS A REAL ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN IF SOME CHANGE IS NOT MADE. OTHER PLTS HAVE SPOKEN WITH ARPT PERSONNEL WHO SAID THEY WOULD CHK INTO THE SIT.