Traffic-safety efforts need public support
| • | State officials weighing issue of speed vs. safety |
Advertiser Staff
How can officials be sure their traffic-safety efforts will find public acceptance? One University of Texas study offered these suggestions:
- Be sure all parts of the government buy into the policy. "Too often, many cities have hastily approved and implemented traffic-calming programs that resulted in a policy controversy they did not expect."
- Make sure there's a legitimate problem, not a perceived one. Don't respond prematurely to a small vocal group based solely on their observations.
- Require neighborhoods to submit a petition with at least 60 percent to 75 percent of the residents requesting traffic calming.
- Evaluate the full effect of the devices before proceeding. Traffic-calming devices sometimes affect emergency response times and create new noise and air pollution.
- Take actions to eliminate the root cause of the traffic problem. Sometimes traffic calming just addresses the outward effects of the problem.
- Ensure that public hearings are held that involve not just the affected neighborhoods but also drivers who use the roads on their way to somewhere else.
- Base decisions on facts, not emotions.
