SPEEDING AWARENESS
Motorists generally drive at speeds they feel comfortable,
often oblivious to their surroundings or their actual speed. Therefore, to slow the
average vehicle's speed, efforts must be made to educate the drivers both in regards to
their speed and their environment. There are essentially two routes to take when
attempting to reduce speeds. One is through police enforcement - frequent and
consistent radar patrols. The second approach concentrates on the conscience of
nearly all human beings - it must be made clear to drivers that the area in question is a
residential community with children and that they are driving entirely too fast. 
In enclosed communities with no through traffic, the efforts
can vary between sending the frequent offender a letter through the local community
association or by direct confrontation, either alone or in a group of other neighbors.
In communities with greater amounts of through traffic, the
problem is slightly more involved, therefore, speed reduction methods usually require
assistance from the Sheriff's Department and the County Government. These these
techniques are:
- Frequent and persistent radar speed enforcement
from the County's Sheriff's Department.
- A speed notification sign board - a radar speed gun identifies a
motorist's speed and flashes that speed on a large sign board easily read by the passing
motorist. A sign slightly farther down the road identifies the area as residential
and requests that the motorist respect the posted speed limit. This program has
shown a marked decrease following the use of the speed board.
- Letters to offenders - vehicles are observed from an ordinary
passenger vehicle parked along the road during a period of the day when there is heavy
traffic. All offender's license plate numbers are identified, including the time,
date and speed they were traveling. Their addresses are then obtained from the
Sheriff's Department and a letter is sent requesting they respect the posted speed limit
and the quality of life for that community. This is projected to have the same
effect as the speed notification sign board.
- Community Out Days - residents line the sidewalk during rush
hours with signs, banners, etc. to give notice to drivers that the street is residential,
with numerous children. This has been known to be effective in various parts of the
county.
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