A person or persons unknown committed an act of engineering. That's essentially what the N.C. Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors concluded after examining an eight-page traffic analysis submitted by a North Raleigh neighborhood group to the state DOT (see today's Road Worrier with reader comments).

Since the board could not identify the author / culprit, it dismissed a charge that David N. Cox was practicing engineering without a license.

Cox distributed the report, titled "Analysis of Traffic Signal Warrants for Selected Intersections of Falls of Neuse Road," by email. (See document copy at the end of this blog post.)

But it didn't have his name, or anybody's name, as author. (It said, "Submitted by the Residents of North Raleigh," a silly stretch.)

The board doesn't know whether Cox was the author because he refused to answer its questions. ... [MORE]

Rush Limbaugh's Monday morning commentary distilled the populist anger expressed by critics who have attacked the "arrogant attitude" of "bureaucrat" Kevin Lacy, NCDOT's chief traffic engineer, for his handling of a study submitted by David N. Cox and his North Raleigh neighbors (see today's Road Worrier with some reader comments, and the Feb. 3 story with many more).

But licensed professional engineers are split over whether Lacy was right to spark an investigation by the N.C. Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors over whether Cox is guilty of practicing engineering without a license -- a misdemeanor in North Carolina. (Here's a link to the traffic study submitted by Cox.)

Read on for the full texts of Limbaugh's 90-second commentary and three e-mails -- one pro and two con -- from professional engineers. ... [MORE]

The outrage story this week seems to be Thursday's front-page article 'Citizen activist grates on state/Traffic study called illegal' (read it here if you missed it).

Here is a sampling of letters. Some will appear in the paper over the next week (two on tomorrow's editorial page).