I submitted the following to the Fixer about 10 days ago. From today's article it appears that they are happy to help drivers by setting up the map, but they don't want to actually take on the challenge to reduce the problem.
"So you got a ticket in one of Toronto's many fishingholes. Welcome to the real world. But you're the Fixer and you want to dosomething about it, great! Youunderstand that the problem is a difference between posted speed and designspeed/85th percentile, a good start. Butto fix it you need to understand the whole cycle:
- Nimbys complain to theirCouncillor about people driving faster than the speed limit on a nearby street;
- Politicians vote to lower thespeed limit even further because it’s an easy way to pretend to do somethingand win votes;
- Cops discover yet another newfishing hole and set up shop;
- Cops/City make money fromspeeding fines;
- Insurance companies use theseminor convictions as an excuse to dramatically increase premiums, with no actualincrease in costs;
- Government and the insuranceindustry mount “speed kills” campaigns to justify their revenues and encouragemore Nimbys to complain about speeders.
As a result, roads become less safe becauseof a greater speed differential between the 85[SUP]th[/SUP] percentile and thefew people who actually pay attention to ridiculously low posted limits.
So how do you fix the problem? Setting speed limits at the design speed isthe theoretical solution, but this would be extremely time consuming andpolitically impossible.
Instead the Star and the Fixer should tryto break this cycle by encouraging Council to vote to direct all revenues fromtraffic violations to some worthy cause, say transit improvement. This would still be politically correct, butit would remove the police financial motivation. It would also be hard for the Police toobject, because it would show that their real motivation is dollars, notsafety, as they like to profess.
Will this completely resolve theproblem? No. People are generally lazy, and the police arepeople too. It’s much easier for policeto lay a charge by sitting at a fishing hole rather than going after unsafelane changes, left turns in front of oncoming traffic, break and enters,motorcycle thefts from condo garages, etc, etc, etc. Speeding convictions in court are also easierto secure, as they rely on technology instead of the judgement of theofficer. And the Police assess theireffectiveness on case closure rates. Allthat being said, removing the financial motivation will still be a huge stepforward.
We know the Star likes a cause, especiallyif it involves the Police. Good luck,fight the good fight, and keep us posted.
Name withheld for fear of police reprisal"
