Are non-school zone speed cameras on the horizon?
Inever fully realized how destructive speed could be until I saw racing legend Huston Platt at the Yellow River Drag Strip on March 2, 1969. His “Dixie Twister” funny car reached around 180 mph when it bolted from the track, sliced a deadly path through spectators, and ended back on the track. Eleven people died and perhaps 50 more were injured.
I can still hear the spine-tingling voice of the announcer begging spectators to leave the track so that ambulances could get to the injured. At five months before my 19th birthday, speed and car crashes took on an entirely new meaning.
The National Safety Council estimated that around 40,000 people lost their lives in car crashes last year. And, the National Highway Safety Administration indicated that speeding was involved in over one-third of all fatal crashes.
I recently read a social media comment from someone complaining about the intent of Dekalb County to install speed cameras in school zones. He said that Dekalb County had devised another way to increase revenue. Maybe I misinterpreted, but it sounded to me like he didn’t give a fiddlers-flick about the law, children or crossing guards. It is hard not to care when you’ve seen countless videos and read lots of stories about speeders who killed or maimed children or crossing guards in school zones.
Bowlers get 10 points for knocking down 10 bowling pins, but drivers get 10-plus years for knocking down a crossing guard or a child in a school zone. Bowling is a mere game, but a school zone is a dead serious business. If drivers are paying attention, school zones are not difficult to spot. They are marked with signs and most have flashing yellow lights.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that a Georgia law that was passed in 2018, allows speed cameras to be used for traffic enforcement in school zones. There are groups who don’t believe that speed cameras actually help to increase driver safety. They believe that speed cameras cause specific drivers to drive dangerously below the posted speed limit. They also feel that the cameras are imperfect, they cause some speeding tickets to be issued incorrectly, and that the accused is not allowed to face an accuser.
“Is the proof in the pudding?” Some governments have already removed their red-light cameras because scores of drivers became aware of their presence and stopped busting red-lights. Personally, when a sign or my GPS signals a red-light camera is near, I am reminded to drive with safety and the law in mind.
The local news recently reported that two drivers were caught racing at 118 mph on Georgia 400. Several online stopping distance calculators indicated that a car traveling that fast would need from two to three football field lengths to stop. A difference perspective is that at 118 mph, it would require more length than the height of the Empire State Building to properly stop a car.
I am riveted every time I drive east on I-20 and see the trailer park that was once the Yellow River Drag Strip. This location will always be my everlasting symbol of a horrific day in drag racing, and the sickening mayhem that speeding can cause.
Anytime I see cars flying down the road, I wonder if the drivers have any clue what lies in the road ahead. Do they have a psychic ability to know if there’s a fallen tree, stopped traffic or some other road obstruction?
People have heard that speeding is dangerous about as much as they’ve heard their car’s warranty is about to expire. Yet speeding continues to be a contributing factor in hordes of traffic fatalities. Since speed limits, the law and speeding citations don’t eliminate fatalities or stop speeders, are non-school zone speed cameras on the horizon?
Speeding can be exciting, but some drivers speed because they didn’t properly plan enough time for their trip. When entering an interstate, numerous drivers immediately speed toward the fast lane then hover as close as possible to the tailpipe of any vehicle occupying that lane. Hordes of people drive with their brain in their pocket. Today’s cars are more comfortable, speed limits are higher, and many people don’t realize that they’re driving faster than they can think.
Most people are okay with drivers who want to travel faster, as long as the faster driver is in the lead. Take a lead from Mother Teresa, “Never travel faster than your guardian angel can fly.”