They're gunning for SPEEDERS.Byline: Matt Cooper Matt Cooper may refer to:
David Cunningham David Cunningham may refer to:
Parked in his driveway in south Eugene, the 65-year-old retired communications technician aims a radar gun radar gun n. A usually hand-held device that measures the velocity of a moving object by sending out a continuous radio wave and measuring the frequency of reflected waves. at passing traffic and pulls the trigger. The speed limit is 25 mph. Cunningham has clocked motorists as fast as 40 to 45 mph, but today people are generally minding; he gets readings of 28, 29, even just 22 mph. Cunningham jots down license plates and sends the information to the city, and violators get letters imploring im·plore v. im·plored, im·plor·ing, im·plores v.tr. 1. To appeal to in supplication; beseech: implored the tribunal to have mercy. 2. them to slow down. Not everyone appreciates it. Cunningham's been called a Nazi and received more than a couple "one-finger salutes," as he put it. Others have thanked him for bringing the hazard to their attention. Either way, Cunningham will continue his work. "I've never seen anybody get killed, but I've seen some awful close ones," he said. "We're just trying to get the people's attention." Speeding a tough problem So can anyone stop neighborhood speeders? Barring putting a police officer on every street corner in America, the short answer is no. But that doesn't stop folks from trying, and in Eugene-Springfield, the Friendly Area Neighbors are trying as hard as anybody. Residents of the neighborhood in south Eugene have tried everything from road obstructions to arming themselves with radar guns, and on Monday they will host a public meeting to get advice from a traffic expert with the University of Portland The University of Portland (UP) is a private Catholic university located in Portland, Oregon. It is specifically affiliated with the Congregation of Holy Cross and is the sister school of the University of Notre Dame. Founded in 1901, UP has a student body of about 3,200 students. . Mojie Takallou, an associate professor of civil engineering, will discuss any number of anti-speeding measures up to and including automatic cameras that snap photographs of speeders so that police can mail them tickets. Speeding can generally be attributed to simple human nature, Takallou said: Speeders have developed bad habits bad habit Unhealthy habit Clinical medicine A patterned behavior regarded as detrimental to physical or mental health, which is often linked to a lack of self-control. Cf Good habit. , and it will take a concerted effort to change them. In police and engineering circles, that effort is known as "The Three E's" - enforcement, education and engineering. Enforcement Takallou believes police presence is critical to stopping speeders, but Eugene and Springfield don't appear to have adequate numbers. Nationwide, there is an average of 2.2 officers per 1,000 people. That's low to control speeding, Takallou said, but the numbers for Eugene and Springfield are even lower - both departments have just 1.3 officers per 1,000 people. Eugene's traffic enforcement unit hopes to add two officers by this time next year, bringing the team to 10. "That's the largest we've ever been," Sgt. Derel Schulz said, "and it's still one below the national average for cities of this size." The result? Minor speeders slip past while officers go after major violators: Schulz said the average speed for which officers ticket drivers is 10 to 15 mph above the limit. Thus, enforcement also falls to people like Cunningham and Eugene's radar volunteer program. Cunningham, who has done it for two years now, said the sight of someone pointing a radar gun at you will slow you down, even if it's just another citizen taking the reading. "It gets your attention," he said. "I don't think people deliberately, to a large extent, speed." Brian Kelly Brian Kelly may refer to:
Feedback on photo radar is mixed: Schulz, of EPD EPD expected progeny difference. , said it allows the police to ticket more offenders, and the camera can't be accused of favoritism. But photo radar can be expensive, Schulz said, and there are other concerns - like invasion of privacy invasion of privacy n. the intrusion into the personal life of another, without just cause, which can give the person whose privacy has been invaded a right to bring a lawsuit for damages against the person or entity that intruded. and the difficulty of tying offenders to the offense after the fact. Also, many officers prefer face-to-face contact at the time of the violation. In Springfield, the police will continue to be the main tool against speeders, Traffic Engineer Brian Barnett Brian Barnett (born February 10, 1987 in Edmonton, Alberta) is a Canadian sprinter. External links
When somebody speeds, "I totally understand the concern that 'this isn't safe,' " Barnett said. "That's an enforcement thing - the police respond and they're very good at that." Education Some say speeders just need information. Consider, for example, that a driver on a five-mile trip who drives 35 mph in a 25 mph zone saves just 3 1/2 minutes. Police officers also believe that they can cure those speeders who are simply unaware of their speeds or the posted limit. Two things they consistently hear from speeders are, "I didn't realize I was going that fast" and "I wasn't paying attention Noun 1. paying attention - paying particular notice (as to children or helpless people); "his attentiveness to her wishes"; "he spends without heed to the consequences" attentiveness, heed, regard ." The honesty of a violator who's about to get a ticket is debatable de·bat·a·ble adj. 1. Being such that formal argument or discussion is possible. 2. Open to dispute; questionable. 3. In dispute, as land or territory claimed by more than one country. , of course. But 46-year-old Richard Pruett seemed earnest when he was recently clocked at 37 mph in a 25 mph zone along 28th Avenue. He was out of his car before Eugene officer John Risko could approach him; he walked up to Risko's cruiser cruiser, large, fast, moderately armed warship, intermediate in type between the aircraft carrier and the destroyer. During World War II, battle cruisers operated as small battleships, combining in one vessel maximum qualities of gun caliber, armor protection, and , asking, "Was I speeding?" "I thought it was like, 30 to 35 here," Pruett said, while Risko wrote him up. "It should be around 30, if you want my opinion - 90 percent of the time, that's what the traffic does." Without enforcement, speeders set their own speeds, Takallou said. Drivers know exactly how fast they're going, he added, and if they're not stopped, they come to believe that's the speed that they can drive. For Kelly, of the Friendly neighborhood, education also means taking an honest, hard look at the speeder - in other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , friends and neighbors. "How do we make people aware that this is their problem?" he asked. "It's not an amorphous 'them' that's doing it - it's us, we are the problem. It often turns out that people speeding are often doing it fairly close to home." The strongest medicine may be the ticket itself. On the same day that he ticketed Pruett, Risko stopped a woman driving 40 mph and faster through a 20 mph school zone along Polk Street Polk Street is a street in San Francisco that travels northward from Market Street to Jefferson Street. It's attractions are the See's Candy flagship store at California Street, and is usually cleaned every Saturday by the neighborhood organization. . She got a ticket for $180 - that's the fine for driving 11 to 20 mph over the limit - but Risko could have cited her higher speed, 42 mph, and written the ticket for $300 for driving 21 to 30 mph over the limit. Then he could have doubled it, for speeding in a school zone - $600. "She's lucky she got me," Risko said. "I'm a nice guy." Engineering The woman was driving in the Friendly neighborhood, where residents have been among the city's most active in fighting speeding. In addition to volunteer radar watch, the neighborhood has tried speed bumps and a host of other obstructions, as well as the re-striping of Jefferson Street to a double-yellow line A double-yellow line is a common road marking meaning different things in many parts of the world. UK Double yellow lines occur only on the side of carriageways and indicate 'no parking at any time'. , Kelly said. It's all engineering, and it's meant to address two nasty realities in the Friendly neighborhood, said Brian Genovese gen·o·a n. A large jib used on a racing yacht. Also called genoa jib. [After Genoa.] Adj. 1. , transportation engineer: Friendly connects outlying out·ly·ing adj. Relatively distant or remote from a center or middle: outlying regions. outlying Adjective far away from the main area Adj. 1. areas to downtown, which means its roads handle both homeowners slowing for their driveways and commuters zipping through; and its grid-system of roads makes it easy for speeders to map alternate routes An official alternate route is a bannered highway that provides an alternate alignment for a highway. Originally, the term for these routes was "optional"; but in 1959, the designation became alternate. on otherwise quiet side streets. The trick with engineering is eliminating the entire problem: Speed bumps installed on Friendly in 1997 slowed speeds to 22 to 28 mph, down from 30 to 40 mph, and reduced traffic by 40 percent. But traffic simply shifted a street or two over, so more steps were taken - traffic circles, curb extensions A curb extension (or also kerb extension, bulb-out, nib, elephant ear, curb bulge and blister) is a traffic calming measure, intended to slow the speed of traffic and increase driver awareness, particularly in built-up and residential and speed bumps among them. The project was generally successful, Genovese said. But like other officials, he doubts that engineering will solve neighborhood speeding without education and enforcement. Schulz, the police officer, was even more blunt. "As long as there's cars, as long as there's roads, people are going to speed," he said. "That's just a matter of fact." NEIGHBORHOODS AND TRAFFIC What: A public meeting with Mojie Takallou, an associate professor of civil engineering at the University of Portland When and where: 6 p.m. Monday at the Eugene Public Library, 100 W. 10th Ave. Space is limited; to attend, send an e-mail to traffic@bkms.com or call 434-1040. For more information: Call 434-1040 VOLUNTEER RADAR PATROL Residents can learn to use radar guns to clock speeders at an upcoming meeting of Eugene's radar volunteer program. When and where: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 22 at the Eugene public safety training facility, Second Avenue and Chambers Street Chambers Street is a street in Edinburgh, Scotland, at south of the Old Town. The street is named after William Chambers of Glenormiston, the Lord Provost of Edinburgh who was the main proponent of the 1867 Edinburgh Improvement Act, which gave permission for the street's . Limited seating: To attend, call Brenda Schmidt at 682-5444. CAPTION(S): Police Sgt. Derel Schulz makes a vehicle stop while on patrol in a residential area of Eugene. Schulz is a member of Eugene's traffic enforcement unit. Eugene officer Barry Rager patrols the neighborhood south of 18th Avenue. Chris Pietsch / The Register-Guard David Cunningham, a 65-year-old retired communications technician, aims a radar gun at passing traffic in the Friendly neighborhood. Cunningham's work is not appreciated by all drivers, while others have thanked him for pointing out hazards. |
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