Actual location
This road is more of a local access road next to the interstate. It has no shoulders in the area of the accident and the "wooden stakes in the road" were guard rail supports at a culvert. Generally those stakes are 8" square or so and the guard rail has a total height of about 3 feet. The steel barrier supported by the stakes is ~18" tall. The whole system is designed to keep you from falling into a water obstacle or off a cliff. The road in this location has a total right of way of 60' consisting of two 12' lanes, a 2ft gap to the guard rail and the rest in unimproved ditches up to the private property boundary.
It is a much more scenic and interesting drive than the interstate even though it is within sight of it for the most part. At night however the animals tend to be on this road more and the limited sight lines give you less time to react to them or to other unexpected obstacles. Falling rock, downed trees, parts of other vehicles that have run over aforementioned wildlife, etc.
Generally these roads have a 70mph daytime speed limit and a 65mph night limit. Since this section is limited to 55mph it is a good indication that there are more hazardous conditions than normally encountered. It has more encroachments (driveways) than usual, more contours, and has a history of animal strikes and other accidents that have convinced the State to limit speed.
TLDR: Not a good place to use a feature that is realistically still in beta. Thanks for giving us another data point though.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
