Red Light Bandits
Good Griefus- What is with people in this town? I cannot believe the way people flaunt the law at traffic lights. To ensure your own safety, you need to practice a three-second rule: After the green, wait three seconds to proceed. This gives those drivers a half a block away time to squeeze through. If you have your window rolled down, you can actually hear them floor it at the yellow.
I'm not just talking about little airheads driving their Cavaliers with one hand on the wheel and the other holding a cell phone to their ear, either. This is all kinds- semi drivers, people in company cars and trucks, pricks in Hummers, white trash in Delta 88s, you name it. And its everywhere- East side, GF, Gateway, Downtown. The only constituency that seems under-represented is soccer moms- I think maybe they are at least concerned about safety enough to follow common sense about what a yellow light means.
I can hear it now- "W-eh-eh-eh-hellllll..... Mr. Good Ol' Boy. You are such a freakin' hick- you come from a place that only had one stoplight in the whole town. You don't understand that I am in a hurry to get to my job that I hate. Or that I can't stop this Escalade from 30 MPH in only half a block when the yellow comes on. Besides, if it turns red when I'm in the intersection that's a freebie..." To that I say B.S. I may be a hick, but you are NOT in that big a hurry and you CAN stop that Blingmobile and NO you and three others went through after my light turned green.
I would dearly love to see our Police Depts on both sides of the river clamp down on this for a month or two. That would help for, oh, say, six months or so. But that's better than nothing, and better than what we see happening now. How about it guys? Is it do-able?
Another question I have about this- if something terrible did happen in an intersection because of some fool running a red light, it can't even be called an accident, can it? Accidents are unplanned, and running a red light is a deliberate act. What could a good lawyer do with that? Anybody know?
I'm not just talking about little airheads driving their Cavaliers with one hand on the wheel and the other holding a cell phone to their ear, either. This is all kinds- semi drivers, people in company cars and trucks, pricks in Hummers, white trash in Delta 88s, you name it. And its everywhere- East side, GF, Gateway, Downtown. The only constituency that seems under-represented is soccer moms- I think maybe they are at least concerned about safety enough to follow common sense about what a yellow light means.
I can hear it now- "W-eh-eh-eh-hellllll..... Mr. Good Ol' Boy. You are such a freakin' hick- you come from a place that only had one stoplight in the whole town. You don't understand that I am in a hurry to get to my job that I hate. Or that I can't stop this Escalade from 30 MPH in only half a block when the yellow comes on. Besides, if it turns red when I'm in the intersection that's a freebie..." To that I say B.S. I may be a hick, but you are NOT in that big a hurry and you CAN stop that Blingmobile and NO you and three others went through after my light turned green.
I would dearly love to see our Police Depts on both sides of the river clamp down on this for a month or two. That would help for, oh, say, six months or so. But that's better than nothing, and better than what we see happening now. How about it guys? Is it do-able?
Another question I have about this- if something terrible did happen in an intersection because of some fool running a red light, it can't even be called an accident, can it? Accidents are unplanned, and running a red light is a deliberate act. What could a good lawyer do with that? Anybody know?
posted by Good Ol' Boy at 1:05 PM
3 Comments:
Don't worry, we have the same kind of crazy drivers here in California. It's as if nobody read the DMV handbook. Sometimes a light will turn red and 3 or 4 cars will cruise on through as if the light was still green.
Sadly, the "red light cameras" in many locations have caused more rear-end collisions than anything. People come to a screeching halt and the turkey behind them (who is probably on their cell phone) doesn't react in time.
So, it's not an ND thing. I actually think that people out that way are more courteous drivers than here!
I was hit at a popular intersection by someone that "gunned" it at a red light. I had the pleasure of being removed from my car with the Jaws Of Life! Several accidents have occured in the very spot mine did.
My lawyer did win a settlement for me, but my life long injuries out weigh any dollar amount.
sad deal...sorry to hear about that. As a GF city police officer, I can say that red light enforcement during the day could be a lot better. It is one of those types of enforcement that is actually difficult to perform because of logistics. In order to "prove" a red light violation, the light must be red BEFORE a car enters the intersection. Then, it is nearly impossible to catch up to the car and get a traffic stop on them without causing a crash ourselves. Sometimes there are grant funded "blitzes" where a few officers will go out and really hammer the red lights, writing up to 20 tickets in a few hours. I personally work the midnight shift where this is a little less frequent, but I definently understand your frustration
Post a Comment
<< Home