PDA

View Full Version : How to stop speeders?



wells conklin
01-14-2010, 6:29 PM
Here's the scenario: rural setting, small village near metro area. 35 MPH speed limit, but they go by all day and most of the night at speeds, at times well above 60, even 70. (I'm pretty good at estimating) There have been several serious accidents (thankfully no fatalities) in the past several years as it is a straight stretch of road, houses on both sides, and then a downhill stretch that cannot be seen until one is close to where the downhill begins. At 35 MPH it's not dangerous but at 50 its starts to get a little scary. The police won't agressively patrol. City councils are deaf. Any ideas -- legal ones -- to make 'em ease up on the gas pedal? For example, I know one town that put an old Hiway Patrol cruiser on an approach near the city limits with a manequin. That seems to slow the traffic but we don't have one of those old cruisers around. (Not saying where this is for my own reasons, and one can only guess because it's not my beloved home state listed on my bio.)

Eric DeSilva
01-14-2010, 6:37 PM
I know one town that put an old Hiway Patrol cruiser on an approach near the city limits with a manequin.

I spotted a police car parked on the side of the road about 3 mi. away driving through Oklahoma once--dead straight road, you could see for miles, but I dutifully crawled along at the posted speed limit. It wasn't until I got next to him that I saw he was only 3/4" thick.

Maybe a painted plywood picture of a police car? Probably wouldn't stop regulars who have seen it more than once, but might work on the newbies.

Randal Stevenson
01-14-2010, 7:17 PM
If you find a vehicle that the front looks like a police vehicle (old Crown vic, with properly aligned headlights, etc), you could park it backwards, at the end of a driveway (won't help once they learn).

Hotwheels has a radar gun, seen people using it to slow down speeders (both sets off radar detectors, and person looks (not dressed) like a cop).
Had some problems with some kids going through my area, years ago. I had a full length hedge, hid behind it, and rolled out a big pink, children's ball into the street. They slammed on their brakes, expecting a kid to follow. (and it slowed them down)

Mitchell Andrus
01-14-2010, 7:41 PM
Old refrigerator?
.

Dan Friedrichs
01-14-2010, 7:43 PM
Sit outside with a hairdryer?

Mike Henderson
01-14-2010, 8:16 PM
Is the road used by regulars, or is it mainly used by visitors? If it's regulars, nothing like a fake police car is going to work.

But if it's used by regulars, you'd think they'd be aware of the dangers of the road and adjust their driving to the road. If regulars, my guess is that they believe they can drive the road safely at those speeds. Also,is it only young drivers speeding or is it everyone? If experienced drivers are speeding, it would indicate they believe the speed is safe for the road.

About the only way to slow people down in those situations is to have the road be bad, with lots of holes, for example.

Mike

Paul Atkins
01-14-2010, 8:49 PM
1 1/2" pipe across the road.

James Jaragosky
01-14-2010, 9:51 PM
1 1/2" pipe across the road.
You could stand there naked:eek:

Rod Upfold
01-14-2010, 10:04 PM
Maybe this...?


Rod



http://tg3k.com/images/misc/Off%20My%20Lawn.jpg

Bill Cunningham
01-14-2010, 11:21 PM
1 1/2" pipe across the road.

Not such a bad Idea.. There are some folks that still think those rubber hose traffic counters they stretch across the road are speed indicators. Lay a black rubber hose across the road and see what happens!

Steve knight
01-14-2010, 11:39 PM
get one of those radar signs that display speed and attach a camera flash on it that goes off above 30. see what happens (g)

Mike Heidrick
01-14-2010, 11:48 PM
get one of those radar signs that display speed and attach a camera flash on it that goes off above 30. see what happens (g)


Heck, that has the makings for a quarter mile track test. That or a see how high the numbers can go test.

Steve knight
01-14-2010, 11:50 PM
Heck, that has the makings for a quarter mile track test. That or a see how high the numbers can go test.
except you missed the flash part of it. they will think it is a camera speed trap

Charles Wiggins
01-14-2010, 11:59 PM
Assuming that most of the offenders are male, how about roadside cutouts of scantily clad women?

http://www.teesnthings.com/ProductImages/tv-show/wwe_t-shirts/wwe-torrie-wilson-cardboard-cutout.jpg

Steve knight
01-15-2010, 12:30 AM
that would just cause wrecks. reminds me of a teen bimbo in New Zealand decided it would be cool to flash her chest to drivers going by. one guy got so distracted he ran into her.

Art Mulder
01-15-2010, 9:57 AM
The police won't agressively patrol. City councils are deaf. Any ideas -- legal ones -- to make 'em ease up on the gas pedal?

Kinda tough to do anything if the City Council isn't on board. :confused:

The best option I've ever come across for "traffic calming" was in Edmonton. They had a grid layout on streets in parts of the city, and they had constant problems where people would get off the main road, and be zooming along the side street which paralleled the main road.

The city hit on two options. One was to put these long/shallow speed bumps in the road. Not the 12" wide 4" tall bumps that you get in parking lots, but bumps that were about 4 FEET wide, and just a few inches high. At moderate speed you barely notice them, but if you hit them at any speed it feels like your car is about to fly off into the air. Very disconcerting. (or so I'm told.. :rolleyes:)

The other option they had was to put LARGE planters along the side of the road. (see the diagram below) These would intrude a bit into the road and force you to wiggle your way around them. Again, they could be positioned so that at a reasonable 25-30mpg you could cruise around them, but at speed... forget it.

138466

Other than that, I'd suggest things like rumble strips, or a big fluorescent sign that warns of the hill, or maybe get a flashing amber light installed.


Of course the geek in me would rather that they install radar activated spike belts that emerge when it detects a car at 5-10mph over the speed limit... :p

Lee Schierer
01-15-2010, 10:41 AM
I would be very cautious about doing anything privately. If your efforts cause an accident you could be in for major trouble.

I would suggest dropping letters or stopping to visit everyone along the road and have them sign a petition regarding more speed enforcement. Politicians will listen to the voters if there are enough of them. I would drop a copy of the petition off at the local police department as well. Call the local TV station(s) and appraise them of the situation, perhaps they will do a story that will stir up the city government or police to take action. Point out that the traffic citations could be a good revenue stream for their over spent budgets.....

Harry Hagan
01-15-2010, 11:43 AM
1.Hold a special election and vote out the current city council members that aren’t responsive to the speeding problem.


2.Pass an ordinance requiring speed bumps


3.Install speed bumps.

Pat Germain
01-15-2010, 12:55 PM
IMO, the absolute only real solution would be to put a road around your town to divert the traffic. Yes, it's expensive. And town merchants would probably complain because all their customers are driving around them. But that's the only real solution.

Jason Roehl
01-15-2010, 12:59 PM
Not such a bad Idea.. There are some folks that still think those rubber hose traffic counters they stretch across the road are speed indicators. Lay a black rubber hose across the road and see what happens!

If there are two of those counters running parallel about 2' apart, they're counting AND measuring speed for average purposes, but not tying speed to particular vehicles. If it's a single rubber hose, they'd have to know the vehicle's wheelbase to measure speed--and the wheelbase is very different from vehicle to vehicle.

Horton Brasses
01-15-2010, 1:09 PM
Someone near me went out and bought a sign that flashes the speed and hung it in their front yard. Worked wonders. I have no idea where they bought it or how much it cost. Locals caught on pretty quick; but if you moved it around every few days it would look more official.

Brad Wood
01-15-2010, 1:44 PM
1.Hold a special election and vote out the current city council members that aren’t responsive to the speeding problem.


2.Pass an ordinance requiring speed bumps


3.Install speed bumps.

^^ this ^^

I don't know about #1, but if the whole community gets together you should be able to manage 2 and 3

Mike McDonough
01-15-2010, 1:47 PM
Im thinking IEDs.

Myk Rian
01-15-2010, 2:12 PM
You could stand there naked:eek:
And what, hold the pipe 3' off the ground? :D

Brian Darold
01-15-2010, 2:15 PM
Im thinking IEDs.

Thank you Mike! I was taking a drink of water when I read your post and now I have a pile of soggy papers on my desk. Too funny! :)

Brian

John Baranowski
01-15-2010, 4:11 PM
Get the city to install stop sign(s). That is what they do around here. People may still run the signs, but they at least slow for them.

curtis rosche
01-15-2010, 6:40 PM
get a sign that says speed enforced by air (helicopter)

make your own speed bump,,,

rent a jack hammer, or buy some m80's and drill a hole in the pavement that is just deep enough to fit the whole thing in, set it off, the pot hole will slow them, and if you leave the peices of rock, that will also do it.

Dana Decker
01-15-2010, 7:03 PM
get a sign that says speed enforced by air (helicopter)

make your own speed bump,,,

rent a jack hammer, or buy some m80's and drill a hole in the pavement that is just deep enough to fit the whole thing in, set it off, the pot hole will slow them, and if you leave the peices of rock, that will also do it.


http://farm1.static.flickr.com/168/375585107_c546a2e53c.jpg

Bill Cunningham
01-16-2010, 9:26 PM
Well, as a last resort you could visit the local donut shop and offer to buy a round in exchange for some speed enforcement :mad:

Michael Gibbons
01-17-2010, 1:09 AM
Like said earlier, speed bumps about 4" high, spread far enough apart that they can't get back up to speeding until they are out of the slow speed area-about every 200'.

Rich Stewart
01-17-2010, 1:57 AM
Big sign on the side of the road. Nudist colony ahead.

Rory Talkington
01-17-2010, 2:12 AM
Most of you easterners :D have probably never seen one of these.....course they don't have to look so nice!

Rod Upfold
01-17-2010, 6:20 PM
Well, as a last resort you could visit the local donut shop and offer to buy a round in exchange for some speed enforcement :mad:

As soon as I read it - I knew you had to be from Canada and I look at your location - Yepper...Good old Tim's.


Rod

Rick Potter
01-18-2010, 7:12 PM
As some one already mentioned get a letter about it, have your neighbors sign it, and send it REGISTERED MAIL, to the city fathers and the police agency. This will be taken much more seriously, as it gives you ammo to sue if anything does happen to someone you know. Insist on a couple stop signs.

Rick Potter

Mike Hicks
01-18-2010, 11:35 PM
1x6x8'
1/2 pound concrete nails
Length of rope to reach across road to whatever you can hide behind
Drive nails through 1x6
Attach rope to 1x6
place 1x6 in ditch across road
pull said 1x6 across road as local hotrodders come by
4 flat tires slow vehicle pretty quickly
dispose of evidence before police show up:eek:

Mike Henderson
01-19-2010, 12:19 AM
1x6x8'
1/2 pound concrete nails
Length of rope to reach across road to whatever you can hide behind
Drive nails through 1x6
Attach rope to 1x6
place 1x6 in ditch across road
pull said 1x6 across road as local hotrodders come by
4 flat tires slow vehicle pretty quickly
dispose of evidence before police show up:eek:
Of course, if they lose control of the car after the tires are punctured and run into a ditch or tree and one of the occupants is killed, you definitely want to lose the evidence.

Stick with legal means.

Mike

Dave Lehnert
01-19-2010, 12:28 AM
Well, as a last resort you could visit the local donut shop and offer to buy a round in exchange for some speed enforcement :mad:

Now how is this for convenience?

Mike Cruz
01-19-2010, 8:07 AM
You could clumsily drop a couple of bags of concrte on the road...instant speed bumps!

Cary Falk
01-19-2010, 8:25 AM
3.Install speed bumps.

Our community tried to get speed bumps in our neighborhood. nThe Fire Department fought it because it slowed them down when they were responding to calls.

Rich Stewart
01-19-2010, 9:58 PM
The local Rite-Aid put some of them bolt down plastic speed bumps in their parking lot. next time I saw them they were mangled. Can't imagine the noise it made when the snow plow hit them.

Bill Cunningham
01-19-2010, 10:47 PM
As soon as I read it - I knew you had to be from Canada and I look at your location - Yepper...Good old Tim's.


Rod

Yep...Tims in Canada, and Dunkin in the U.S. Its almost universal:D
I got pulled over. The cop said your eyes look red, have you been drinking? I said Nope. Your eyes look glazed.. You been eating doughnuts? :p

Chris Barnett
01-21-2010, 4:20 PM
What Rick Potter said.
Its legal, practical, probably would work since it directs co-liability in the event of a fatality involving an identified then ignored hazard, provides thus named individuals from whom funds can be (court) obtained to support better schools, youth centers etc, the list is endless.
Good luck and report back :).

Craig Summers
01-21-2010, 4:49 PM
I presume that your OP infers a minimal budget for this project.

The science is called traffic calming, but that usually involves the political money to make that happen.

"Traffic calming is the combination of mainly physical measures that reduce the negative effects of motor vehicle use, alter driver behavior and improve conditions for non-motorized street users." -Institute for Transportation Engineers, Traffic Calming: State of the Practice

Political Pressure
Are any of the town residents or kids with special needs?
What will the county or state legislature do? Does the state have a reckless driving statute?
Who gets the speeding ticket revenue?
Any of neighbors are single and looking to date a cop?
Do the local jurisdictions allow cops to take their cars home across lines, or do they have to stay in jurisdiction? If they don’t allow it, get a cop to park near that road occasionally.

Physical changes
Paint on the roadway
> Fake or 3d speed bumps see examples in Philadelphia
> Zig-zag lines, see what VDOT did for the Washington and Old Dominion trail in Loudoun County VA.
> Humor: Paint a body outline “this could be you”
> Could you create more pedestrian crossing zones?
Park a farm wagon loaded with hay really close to the edge of the road, move it every few days.
Spill some almost cured concrete to create a rough textured road. Drying agents might speed the process

Distractions & Signs
Cut outs like "Cardboard kids"
Lots of reflectors, for late night speeders.

Less than Legal <blank>

Dennis Peacock
01-21-2010, 10:01 PM
This thread is venturing way too far from the OP's original intent of this thread. Please keep it on the OP's topic.

Eric DeSilva
02-22-2010, 4:52 PM
...and thought of the old thread:

http://gizmodo.com/5477181/undercover-bird-feeder-slows-crime-in-its-tracks

Tim Morton
02-22-2010, 6:13 PM
I can say from experience that the large flashing "speed limit is 35" signs on the side of the road really do work...we just installed one by the side of the road at the ski area i work at...and people drive thru town at 60 until they see these signs and SLAM on the brakes to get down under 35.

I have no idea how much one would cost...but i would look into this option.

Ed Harrow
02-22-2010, 11:25 PM
I think this will work ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJZZzM6MgW4&feature=related

I once passed a sign up in Vermont, "SLOW DOWN, DAMNIT!" Worked for me.

Shawn Christ
02-23-2010, 12:02 AM
Unfortunately this relates to my "day job", so I felt obligated to chime in. I think you've already discovered there is no good answer to this. Here are my initial thoughts:


I agree - you shouldn't do ANYTHING to the road without your City Council's consent.
Gimmicks won't offer a permanent solution.
Speed bumps are illegal in many states on public streets.
Stop signs aren't to be used for speed control. This is an enforcement issue.
Don't tick off your local officials - it won't help your situation. Instead, be friendly, be convincing, and be persistent.

For your local officials, it's a matter of finding a balance between residents and the traveling public (we Americans love our cars). For you, it's a matter of convincing local law enforcement this is truly a problem so they can place a greater emphasis on this area; or you should reconsider if you want to live on a thoroughfare.

Ultimately, a typical driver will go as fast as he/she feels comfortable while driving. The more open the road, the faster they go, which is why rural areas are particularly enticing. Curbs, sidewalks, on-street parking, crosswalks, street lights, hydrants, driveways, pedestrians, buildings placed near the property line, and pretty much any other "stuff" along the driving lane will slow people down because it reduces their comfort level.

wells conklin
02-23-2010, 12:04 PM
That's exactly what I'm talkin' about! I need a couple of those!!!