Speeders caught in in a radar trap in Oshawa, Ontario this week were offered a choice of punishment. They could opt for a traditional ticket and fine, or they could listen to a lecture about the dangers of their misdeeds -- not from John Law, mind you, but from local teens participating in a program that's basically about using public shaming as a way to combat speeding.Drivers who opted for the lecture over the fine (and seriously, who wouldn't) would then be read a one-page essay by a local teenage boy or girl. These essays feature accident stats, reminders of the potential consequences of speeding, and in some cases, anecdotes about how speeders had negatively impacted the students' lives. According to the Toronto Star, the assembled teens "jeered" speeders as they were pulled over -- as if getting pulled over isn't annoying enough to begin with.
Local police reps quoted in the article seem to love the program, claiming it's a better deterrent because people given regular tickets just pay their fines and move on. Conversely, they say that the experience of being dressed-down by an 11th-grader is something that sticks with the offender long after he or she drives away. Hey, if it works, great. After all, drivers avoid a fine but still have to deal with the inconvenience of a traffic stop, compounded by the indignity of a lecture from some kid. Somehow, we're not surprised to learn that the use of this particular program is the exception rather than the norm. The Star reports that other police officers prefer the traditional speeding ticket's more "tangible results." Or is that "result$"?
[Source: Toronto Star via FARK]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim @ May 18th 2008 8:59AM
If the true goal is behavior modification and not revenue building, they might be on to something.
jb @ May 18th 2008 9:19AM
that reminds me of my uncle in Europe who had to visit a car accident trauma center as part of a speeding ticket education program. That was the end of his speeding days.
VWsat @ May 18th 2008 10:23AM
This isn't going to work well, IMO. No one really cares what spoiled teenage girls think anyway. If it was your mother/grandmother it would be way more effective:
(Old woman accent, Irish, Polish, Italian...)
"You been a bad boy. Making these nice officers chase after you and slow you down. What's the rush? You don't got no good job anymore, who cares if you're fired.
Ohhh, you were going off to that tart of a girlfriend weren't you, WEREN'T YOU....Well I'll soon fix your naughty behavior"
(Pulls out wooden spoon)
"No Mama, please, not the spoon! NOOOOO"
THWACK
(Policeman under his breath) "Damn, I'm glad I'm not that guy"
rpm773 @ May 18th 2008 11:08AM
Are these the same 11th grade chicks who wash cars for fund-raisers on the weekend? If they would wear bikinis and/or wet t-shirts, I'd listen to them pontificate on the horrors of speeding for a bit.
I suspect these aren't those types of girls, though.
wormyguy @ May 18th 2008 1:23PM
Think fat, ugly, self-important, Community Service Club/Abstinence League types.
vdk @ May 18th 2008 3:03PM
PERV!!!
Yankee @ May 18th 2008 11:49AM
Oh please - at least 95% of all speed limits in the U.S., and I guess Canada too, (save for school and construction zones and such) are designed specifically for revenue building. Think of how many state governments and municipalities would go bankrupt in no time flat if everyone actually observed the speed limits and no one got speeding tickets.
Seems like this is more of a P.R. ploy than anything else - guess sometimes publicity is worth more than money.
DKB_SATX @ May 18th 2008 12:10PM
I detest the holier-than-thou, insurance-company-driven fantasy that running 8 mph over the limit on a rural highway with negligible traffic density is comparable to running 30 mph over in a school zone.
"Speed kills" is a stupid, myopic attitude and the rational backlash against it is why many people just apply a blanket "speed limits are stupid" attitude and always exceed them, whether or not they make sense.
Low speed limits in residential areas? Reasonable. Low, STRICTLY enforced speed limits in school zones? Essential. Arbitrary speed limits zealously enforced on rural highways with little traffic, no pedestrian crossings, and justified because "speed kills," stupid knee-jerk propaganda that fills the coffers of states, counties, municipalities and insurance companies.
wez @ May 18th 2008 1:11PM
Last thanksgiving all across canada they had a campaign to enforce the law on the highways to curb the carnage on long weekends. Call it "operation traffic ticket" I forgot what they called it. In Alberta (pop. 3.5M) handed out $50K in speeding tickets. In Ontario (pop. 12M ) handed out $5000 in fines. I think were looking at two different ends of the enforcement baton. One, too much Alberta (photoradar tax collector) and Ontario with maybe uhm, maybe to little (ontariobuan). Which seems to be the one of the reasons that the law for street racing seem to catch little old men on there way to church doing 50 over and a nurse late for work. What's 50 over if u usually do 30 over and dont get tagged. The law is the law but it seems to be abused by the crown as much as the public.
How can u say that photoradar is all about safety when 80% of traffic fatalities happen on rural roads yet that's exactly where they decided not to implement it.
jamie @ May 18th 2008 1:16PM
Speeding Saves Lives
viz
http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?p=speeding+saves+lives&ei=UTF-8&fr=my-vert-vid-top&tnr=21&vid=1293251878
Rogue_G @ May 18th 2008 3:01PM
Hahaha, you couldn't get more pointless than a system like that in a place like Durham Region. There's a cop station every other block, and a school zone on the majority of North-South roads. They have a FLIR carrying helicopter at night, and predictable speed traps during the day. I bet that none of those students have ever driven a car around here, otherwise they wouldn't be so eager to jeer other motorists. Counter yourselves lucky you don't live in this cop-coddled community...
IK47 @ May 18th 2008 6:22PM
I commute to oshawa on highway 7
speed limit is 80, but traffic moves at 120
I rarely ever see any cops, and if I do, they're not pulling anyone over.
bakka @ May 18th 2008 10:24PM
Of course alcohol, aggression, failing to yield, tailgating, distraction,(take your pick here, stereo, cell phone, newspaper, computer, tv, etc) do not enter the picture.
So what will these barf bag teens do if a cop pulls you over for talking on your cell phone and running a red light?
Retards!
tekdemon @ May 18th 2008 10:31PM
While obviously this would be silly to use on a light speeder (meaning like 10-15 over), for excessive speeders that are obviously ignoring the flow of traffic it might be worthwhile.
But seriously I wish we'd use public shaming on more crimes. Shame is a pretty big deterrant compared to fines or even a tiny stint in jail, also a lot cheaper on the tax dollars.
I remember seeing a whole bunch of people in court for stealing $10 or $20 worth of groceries from Walmart. I honestly just don't see how wasting taxpayer dollars to lock those people up makes any sense whatsoever. Shaming them in public might make a bigger impact than locking them up for a month.
Corey W. @ May 19th 2008 11:49AM
This bullsh*t wouldn't work on me no matter how tear jerking or heartfelt the story was, because in the back of my mind, for every 1 teenager giving this speeches, there's at least 100 speeding or reckless driving at the exact same time of the lecture.
Maybe they should lecture those "rock in a stream drivers" on the physics of traffic flow.