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March 29, 2005

Lower the speed limit?!?

When I lived in Ohio I averaged one speeding ticket a year. I've lived in Knoxville for 5 years now and the only tickets I've gotten were in Kentucky on my way back to Ohio to visit family. I love this area for that. Tickets don't seem to be the cash cow they were in Ohio.

Apparently the Knox County Commission has voted to ask the state to lower our speed limits. Here is a KnoxNews article on the subject. What good will this do? We have an entire city of drivers ignoring the current speed limit because it's not enforced. Slowing down some drivers (those that respect the speed limit - enforced or not) while the rest of us stick to our current high speeds is not a recipe for safe roads.

Not to mention that the stated reason, cleaner air, is just plain stupid. Slowing people down so they're on our roads a few minutes longer isn't going to reduce pollution. The only real way to reduce pollution is to get people out of their cars and require that all cars get better mileage. Given the decades of poor urban planning and unchecked sprawl, this county is in no position for a decent mass transit system.

What this county needs is progressive leadership with a long-term vision, not simple-minded ideas like a lower speed limit.

Posted by Paul Witt at March 29, 2005 10:54 AM

Comments

Posted by: gonzone at April 4, 2005 02:32 PM