Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

InnerRoll9882 t1_iz4rx4v wrote

As a pedestrian in this city this is honestly one of my biggest wishes. If they would only enforce crosswalk laws too I would be a happy person!

20

thisisntmynametoday t1_iz5h1am wrote

They briefly did 10 years ago. A plainclothes officer would see a car coming, start crossing, and any violators would be pulled over.

But then people started complaining about the $250 fine and threatened to sue because it felt like entrapment.

I saw them get three cars with one attempt on Hamilton St!

10

masshole4life t1_iz6b8rp wrote

a coworker who i consider an honest guy was complaining about it. he got a ticket.

he said the cop would saunter into the road at the last second causing the driver to slam on brakes and swerve. coworker insisted he was not speeding and i believe him. the ticket was for failing to yield to pedestrian.

if that's the case they probably stopped to avoid being sued when they inevitably cause an accident.

these types of "gotcha" tactics are great for writing tickets and "raising awareness" but do absolutely nothing to improve safety and in many cases make things less safe.

7

thisisntmynametoday t1_iz6z0ll wrote

WPD set up across from where I worked on Hamilton St. There was a family that lived there that had a son in a motorized wheelchair, and daily drop offs from the school bus were hazardous from people ignoring the crosswalk and the bus lights and sign.

From what I saw, they made sure to step out with a block to spare, not last second. So many people speed on that road, forgetting it’s 25 mph in the city, so it might seem it was “last second.”

A few times they caught multiple drivers at the same time because there are two lanes and both would blast on through. They even managed to catch someone passing a stopped school bus with lights flashing and stop sign extended while he went through the crosswalk. That guy went ballistic and was lucky he wasn’t arrested.

I’ve been hit by cars three times in my life (crosswalk violation, doored, wrong way driver). Worcester drivers are a menace.

9

Airforce987 t1_iz6cgn5 wrote

They got me for that just a few years ago so they definitely still do it. The cop was “nice” and “only” gave me a $40 ticket “instead of a $250”, so maybe that’s why people don’t complain anymore

1

thisisntmynametoday t1_iz6xw49 wrote

I used to work on Hamilton St, where they had much needed weekly enforcement stings. One of the officers told us the enforcement stings prompted a wave of complaints (including someone they got three times in a week!), and that’s why they stopped. We had a brief period of time where people slowed down, and then it went back to being dangerous.

1

Enragedocelot t1_iz9gbcy wrote

Sorry but they don’t actually work. Many studies on it, I used to have the same belief as you, till I looked into the reality of it.

Fuck a red light camera. Cars and pedestrians shouldn’t ever interact.

1