More of the iceberg revealed
As the Massachusetts State Police corruption scandal arrest count grows, the Boston Globe reports on why we don’t hear more about police corruption. Few people in state government have a problem with it. This year’s roundup is led by federal prosecutors. When police are accused of theft in state court magistrates make the charges disappear […]
A Professional Sloganeer in Los Angeles
It made national news. Brian Gallagher, public relations engineer for the City of Los Angeles, dumped a giant pile of pretend engineering on the LA City Council. Councilors complained it wasn’t fake enough but approved it anyway. Depending on the spin of your news source you may have read “LA eliminates speed traps” or “baby-killers […]
Choose your victims well
There’s a legal principle called the “eggshell skull” rule. It says you have an obligation to choose your victims well. I’ll tell you the rest of the story about three men who chose poorly. I’ve mentioned them before when the cases were still pending. Their crimes would have been much less, or not prosecuted, if […]
Your money and your life?
KXAN investigative reporters suggest an 85 mph speed limit is dangerous. The evidence: the speed limit on the Texas SH 130 toll road was posted 85, there were accidents, and accidents increased as more drivers used the highway. Pure fearmongering. There’s not enough information in the report to judge how safe SH 130 is and whether the speed […]
It’s a boring job but somebody has to do it
Tesla is notorious for advertising a “self-driving” car and asking the passenger in the left front seat to pay full attention to driving the same as a dumb old car. Eric Peters recently called out BMW for the same lie. Meanwhile regulators are being asked to look elsewhere as the “trolley problem” makes the rounds […]
Dueling incentives
Accused of contributing to urban congestion, Uber wants a tax to price you out of the city while their cars pay a lower rate. Ride-sharing services love “congestion fees.” In its simplest form a congestion tax is a barrier toll around part of a city, say London or lower Manhattan. You pay $25 to drive […]
Another driving distraction
Several weeks ago a woman was knocked off a speed table and died in a low speed accident. It was the first traffic death in Belmont since 2009 so town officials had to be seen doing something. Guess what local politicians want to do? If you guessed throw some money at the problem you’re right […]
Happiness makes the world slow down
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. At the fork was a new stop sign. The view was clear up both forks, no traffic visible, but we were supposed to stop. Why? The usual reason for an all-way stop in a sparsely populated area. To make residents happy. The town’s engineer had approved an all-way […]
I bet you say that to all the boys
I made a woman’s day. She walked up to me at a rest area, dripping with sarcasm, and began “I want to apologize for driving too slowly for you.” Then she said something about endangering us both and walked away. She must have been pleased with herself. I didn’t have the heart to tell her […]
Pay and pray
Bridgeport, Connecticut discovered what happens when the law is enforced. People would drive into the city, and if they survived to drive away would get a ticket in the mail for violating a parking ordinance. After that they might not drive back. The beginning is a familiar story. A company came to elected officials with […]