City of Calgary converting all school zones into playground zones

[4X4]

Originally Posted by darklord700

It's probably a handheld speed gun the cop used. Point is the cop was there in and around the school zone. Instead of positioning themselves in front of the school zone to potentially stop any accidents from happening, he chose to stay back in the school zone and make $380.

That cop put money in front of the safety of the children.

That's a great idea. Lets park a cop in front of every school in the city. That'll remind everyone to slow down. Of course, we probably wont be able to afford cars since our property taxes would be about $100,000 per year to pay for the extra 2000 cops and cruisers.

I wonder if the CPS is hiring?

[darklord700]

Originally Posted by 4X4

That's a great idea. Lets park a cop in front of every school in the city. That'll remind everyone to slow down.

Not saying we should do this at every zone but if those cops chose to be in and among the playground zones, why didn't they do things to prevent accidents instead of writing tickets? Is money more important that accident prevention?

[getbak]

Originally Posted by darklord700

I don't think playground zones typically have radar signs.

The one near where I live has them both along the east-west and north-south streets.

The stupid thing is that they installed one of them directly above the "END OF PLAYGROUND ZONE" sign: https://goo.gl/maps/XDsZs. It's a 500m long playground zone and they don't warn you that you're speeding through it until it's over.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by darklord700

Not saying we should do this at every zone but if those cops chose to be in and among the playground zones, why didn't they do things to prevent accidents instead of writing tickets? Is money more important that accident prevention?

If the way that speeders are awakened to playground zones was the presence of a visible cruiser, then what would keep them from speeding through zones without the cruiser? The fact that they sometimes see cruisers in PG zones? Isn't that even less effective, since the tip off would be whether there's a blatantly obvious vehicle parked there or not? I don't see how you're solving the problem. What you're really getting at is that you don't like the police profiting from acts that are dangerous to children. I have plenty to say about speed limits, but this is not profit. We pay for the CPS one way or the other. I'm a-ok with d-bags that blast past kids picking up a bit more of the tab. And I'm even better with those people learning a $300 lesson and being more aware the next time.

This is far different than a fishing hole. This is what traffic cops should be doing. Give me a ticket for going 15 over on Stoney? You're an a-hole. Give me a ticket for going 15 over in a playground zone with kids around? I'm a major a-hole.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by darklord700

I don't think playground zones typically have radar signs. Let's assume that a driver sped and, God forbid, hit a kid while a cop was waiting on the other with a speed gun. That cop could have position himself in front of the playground zone to prevent this tragedy from happening since he was in and among that zone already.

Not to say any cop doing this is wrong but I call their educate driver to ensure the saftey of our children propaganda BS. It's just all about money.

I mean the signs that actually post the drivers speed. They have mobile units that they have at construction sites. Or when you are going into Banff.

[darklord700]

Originally Posted by GGG

I mean the signs that actually post the drivers speed. They have mobile units that they have at construction sites. Or when you are going into Banff.

That is a good tool. Most people don't choose to speed, sometimes they just aren't aware of that they are speeding..

[woob]

Not sure if this has been covered, but I've always wondered why school zones/playground zones are not more clearly marked. I remember driving through a school zone for the first time in Phoenix and you'd have to be severely severely distracted to not realize it. There were clear marks on the road surface leading up to the zone, and there were traffic facing signs on both sides of the street.

I've noted many times in Calgary where the view to the playground sign is blocked by a tree or parking cars or what not.

[getbak]

If the city was truly interested in making this all about child safety, they'd invest in signage like this...



Put the controls to the lights inside the school and the Principal or custodian can flip them on about a half hour before classes start and off about a half hour after school lets out (or whatever times are appropriate based on the times that buses arrive and depart). If school is not in session one day, the lights wouldn't be switched on. If school was being held on a day or time that is unusual, the lights could be turned on to make people aware.

This would eliminate the whole "I didn't know it was in effect today" argument. If the lights are flashing, the limit is 30. If they're not, the limit is 50. No need for ridiculously long and unnecessary school zone schedules.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by darklord700

Not to say any cop doing this is wrong but I call their educate driver to ensure the saftey of our children propaganda BS. It's just all about money.

If it's all about money, why are they publicizing this campaign? Wouldn't they catch even more people if they just set up shop around playground zones without the publiclicity?

As for the money, I'd rather the CPS be funded by habitual speeders than by taxes on the rest of us. Doesn't bother me at all that traffic enforcement is used as a source of revenue.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by darklord700

That is a good tool. Most people don't choose to speed, sometimes they just aren't aware of that they are speeding..

I disagree. Example: I regularly speed and am aware of both the limit and how much I'm over it. I speed on Stoney and Deerfoot by about 10-20% as generally the traffic flow is close to that. On other roads, I keep it around 5-15%. Using this method, the police never bother me. Whether I be passing radar or passing a cruiser, I'm fine.

The reason I disagree with your point entirely is that the few times I've been ticketed are on the rare occasions where I wasn't speeding "on purpose" as I didn't actually catch the limit and was going way over. The best way I've been taught the lesson? A ticket.

Financial lessons are the most effective. Seeing a cop doesn't make me think twice, unless it's when I have to move out of their way. I love the ticket-run on violators in playground zones. It's the best lesson and helps put money back into our (taxpayers) pockets.

[ken0042]

Yep- like the old saying goes. Park a police car, and you stop a speeder for a day. Hand out $400, and stop speeders for a lifetime. (Or at least a bit longer.)

Now that I think about it- maybe that saying was about fish.

[Dion]

Police are disappointed in how the first week of school has gone, in terms of school zone enforcement — they wrote roughly 1,400 tickets in just five days.

At 11:30 a.m. one of those mornings, another guy gets pulled over for speeding — he has a kid with him, no licence and he’s drunk.

Another one is busted doing 70 km/h when he should be doing 30 — because, he said, he was late for a golf tee time.

Stacey said officers will be hanging out in the city’s school zones throughout the month of September, to continue doling out tickets until that message sinks in.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2015/09/04...n-school-zones

[Frequitude]

Well s***. I got a speeding ticket for doing 40 in a 30. Obviously was intending to honor the speed limit but accidentally let my speed creep up without noticing. Oddly enough, the cop told me to take the ticket down to the courthouse and ask for leniency.

[Johnny199r]

Originally Posted by Frequitude

Well s***. I got a speeding ticket for doing 40 in a 30. Obviously was intending to honor the speed limit but accidentally let my speed creep up without noticing. Oddly enough, the cop told me to take the ticket down to the courthouse and ask for leniency.

Prosecutor will always knock it down to the minimum fine in order to avoid a trial.

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by zamler

How could anyone be dumb enough to say that?

If you're caught red handed....

I drove past an undercover car on 52nd street a couple years ago, blabbing away on my phone. It was one of those ones where I looked over and stared at him with big "Oh s***" eyes and he stared back at me with "are you ****ing kidding me" eyes.

But we came up to a red light after exchanging looks, where he quickly pulled into my lane behind me, obviously with the intent of pulling me over once we were away from the intersection.

So I decided to pull myself over. I directed him through my rearview mirror that I'd pull over to the far right lane, he nodded and then we pulled the double maneuver pretty casually when the light turned green.

He wasn't happy about the distracted driving obviously but enjoyed the fact that I recognized the situation and made the call to pull myself over before being lit up. Got $100 off the ticket in court.

[Frequitude]

Originally Posted by Johnny199r

Prosecutor will always knock it down to the minimum fine in order to avoid a trial.

I'm happy to pay the fine. I was speeding after all. It would just be nice to have the demerits removed. Not sure if I'll bother though. I've never protested a ticket before. Do I have to go down on the specific date on the ticket or can I go whenever??

[Locke]

Originally Posted by zamler

How could anyone be dumb enough to say that?

The same way when you watch a commercial on TV that says:

"Real People NOT ACTORS!!! We swearzy....for Realz yo!"

[photon]

Originally Posted by polak

Teach your kid to cross the street like a normal human being.

Kids aren't robots, you don't "teach" them once and they make the right decision every time after that.

Children are children and they sometimes make bad choices, get distracted, overreact, etc. Once I'm walking home from school with my kid and a bike rings its bell and he jumps out of the way right into the street. Car going 30 stops with room to spare. Car going 50, maybe a different story.

That's not even accounting for kids with disabilities that inhibit their ability to make good choices in those kinds of situations.

So yes, teach the kids as much as possible, but teaching entails bringing them along slowly because someone learning is more prone to error, and sheltering them while they learn.

[sketchyt]

Quick question. When driving in a playground/school zone during applicable hours, if there's a kid looking to cross the street and is not at a crosswalk, are you supposed to stop and let the kid cross?

I've always been taught as a child to find a crosswalk or play frogger at my peril, but the raving lunatic dad who followed me home thinks different apparently.

[Ducay]

This country as a whole babies pedestrians wayy too much, so much so we become dangers to ourselves overseas.

That said, I don't stop for pedestrians unless they're at a corner/crosswalk. People who brake for Jaywalkers are the biggest danger on the road.