In this week’s TheNewspaper.com Roundup!
–1964 Gov Study revealed the danger of slow drivers–
–Study finds New Traffic Signal feature improves traffic flow–
–NJ–no getting around slow vehicles–
Friday, November 10, 2017
Government Study In 1964 Revealed Dangerously Slow Drivers
Half a century ago, US government officials were concerned enough about the safety of rural highways to take a closer look at the causes of accidents. In an exhaustive survey, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Public Roads — which has since become the Transportation Department’s Federal Highway Administration — concluded that excessively slow driving is every bit as dangerous as overly fast driving.
Thursday, November 9, 2017
Study Finds New Traffic Signal Feature Improves Traffic Flow
Motorists who find themselves stopped at an intersection will arrive at their destination faster if traffic signals give motorists notice before the light changes to green. A team of Belgian researchers from Hasselt University presented their findings on the “starting yellow” idea to the Transportation Research Board in Washington, DC earlier this year.
Wednesday, November 8, 2017
New Jersey: No Getting Around Crawling Vehicles
When courts interpret traffic laws, it is almost always in the context of a drug case or other serious felony. The legal costs involved at the appellate level make it generally not worth the risk with low-stakes cases such as speeding or illegal passing. Last week, New Jersey’s second highest court had the chance to decide a case based on its interpretation of the passing statute, without any other considerations involved. Motorist Albert J. Fields Jr faced no other consequences than the $93 that the Superior Court, Appellate Division — the equivalent of a court of appeals in other states — ultimately ordered Fields to pay for the crime of driving around a car traveling far below the speed limit.
Tuesday, November 7, 2017
Federal Rules Add $2100 To Cost Of New Cars
The thousands of pages of federal rules and regulations governing the way automobiles are designed has made cars and trucks more expensive and heavier than ever. A report released last week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) calculated that the various mandates boosted the sticker price of new cars by an average of $2100 (using 2017 dollars). Red tape also made the average car 171 pounds heavier than it would have otherwise been.
Monday, November 6, 2017
Belgium, France: Speed Cameras Painted, Burned
In Ghent, Belgium, on Thursday a man began carefully painting over the lenses of the speed camera on Sleepstraat in broad daylight. A passerby used a cellphone to record the man as he walked around the automated ticketing machine holding a bucket of white paint and a paint roller. The video was posted on YouTube.
