By Bob Harris
For years, this column has cited instances of ticket giving by the city which many call “speed traps” or “cash cows” as a way of making money. The Clearview Expressway is a straight run from the Throgs Neck Bridge to Hillside Avenue, which invites going faster than the posted 50 mph. I have noticed as many as three police cars in a row giving tickets to drivers exceeding the speed limit in any one direction.
The stretch of Union Turnpike next to Creedmoor and to the west is a straight stretch where police cars used to wait to give out tickets but there are now speed cameras. There are no houses along the north side of this road, so there is little chance of an accident with cars from cross streets but tickets are still given out. One has to weight the need of the city giving tickets against the amount of money generated from tickets. Also a police car sometimes has waited at 196th Street in Fresh Meadows to give tickets as cars travel along Union Turnpike across from Cunningham Park heading east.
More cameras have been placed in places to either slow down cars to prevent accidents or as a way to make money for the city. One camera is at the three-way corner just after one exits the Long Island Expressway at 188th Street going east. It is so close that it is too easy for one to get to the lights next to the gasoline stations and go through as the light changes after one exits the Long Island Expressway at 50 mph. There is also a camera outside of Martin Van Buren High School. I don’t know what type of signs are there.
Another new camera is found about 100 feet from the exit of the LIE going east off of the Francis Lewis Boulevard exit. It is high up on the fence on the left side. People have complained that there is not enough time to slow down from the expressway speed of 50 mph. If one goes straight, then there is St. Francis Prep on the right with thousands of students. If one exits and crosses three lanes of traffic and goes to the right, then there is PS 179 on the left which is a special needs school.
Yet, each of these children is escorted to the school bus one or two at a time by hand and the buses have their red flashing lights on so the children are protected.
There are no signs advising motorists that there is a school in either of these two locations when one leaves the LIE. There are no signs telling of the speed limit. I have seen a large white square sign with yellow lettering saying “School 20 mph” somewhere in Middle Village the other day as we were wandering around lost. It was very visible. Why not here?
There are only large chartreuse signs of children walking near the schools. If there is a camera, but no warning signs telling of speed limitations and of the camera being there, then my only conclusion is that the camera is to make money for the city as well as to probably protect the children from speeding cars or trucks.
People are getting so many tickets through the mail from these cameras that people just call them “cash cows.” There should be more warning signs of all kinds so motorists have a chance to slow down then they will have more respect for the campaign to save lives due to vehicles which are going too fast and hit people. Give us a chance to follow the law.
GOOD AND BAD NEWS OF THE WEEK: Gun deaths of all kinds in many different places continue to occur although many different groups have been formed to fight the epidemic. The gun lobby still prevents the passage of federal laws which would stop a number of these killings. Some states, including New York state, do have helpful gun laws.
One cause of deaths is weapons which are left in a house under a bed or a couch or in a shoe box in a closet where children find them. Another problem is mentally ill people who obtain a gun. We all just have to keep up the pressure.
