Traffic Experts to Have Say, Then Readers to Speak Out
Dear Readers:
At the year’s end, newspapers are usually filled with articles that recap the main events of the year. Street Smart, however, is looking ahead toward 1992. Next week, traffic planners, experts, police and others will suggest New Year’s resolutions that the public can adopt to help keep things moving.
Two weeks later, readers get to have their say. Feel like traffic planners ought to resolve to listen to drivers more? Let them know. Wish that cities would make traffic light synchronization a top priority? Mail in a letter. What resolutions do you want the experts, the officials or even other motorists to follow? Street Smart looks forward to hearing from you.
Meanwhile, it’s time to shake out the mailbag this week and hear some comments on issues that have come up in past columns.
Dear Street Smart:
I’m writing in response to the complaint (Dec. 9) about solo drivers using the car-pool lane. When driving in the car-pool lane, I have suffered angry glares, gestures and mouthings from other drivers who assume I am a solo driver breaking the law.
What can’t be readily seen is that I have two sleeping children slumped down in the rear seat, who aren’t visible except to California Highway Patrol motorcycle officers (who have checked me out on every trip I’ve made in the past three to four months).
So, for my serenity and that of others, please advise your readers that maybe it’s not a solo scofflaw in the car-pool lane but just a mom with tired kids!
Martha A. Della Ripa, Irvine
Consider it done. It also sounds like there might be a business opportunity here. Instead of “Baby on Board” signs, maybe someone should sell “My Fellow Car-Poolers Are Sleeping” signs.
Dear Street Smart:
I agree wholeheartedly with your comments (Nov. 11) that headlights should be checked for proper adjustment. However, have you been able to locate a facility that has headlight adjustment equipment? I have asked several dealers and independent stations if they had such equipment. Each said, “No.” They point the car toward a flat wall, then turn the lights on and adjust. This method is not accurate.
Paul H. Miller, Jr., Costa Mesa
The state licenses certain repair shops to make certified--and accurate--adjustments. Call the state Bureau of Automotive Repair at (800) 952-5210 to find these “Official Lamp Stations.” Give your ZIP code, and an operator will give you the names and numbers of nearby locations. Double-check with the repair shop to ensure that personnel use an electronic aiming device.
Dear Street Smart:
I am outraged by your article (Dec. 2) about the additional $1 added to the cost of registering our vehicles in Orange County as a means to pay for removal of abandoned vehicles.
Jerry Bernheimer of Santa Ana wrote correctly that the cost of removing such vehicles should be paid for by the vehicle’s owner or out of lien-sale proceeds.
You responded by explaining that generally, no one claims these vehicles and that the lien-sales yield little money. Furthermore, you wrote: “Most cities allow a particular towing company to remove cars after an accident, but for providing this service, the company must also agree to haul away abandoned vehicles.”
I called a local wrecking company and found that the typical scrap value of an abandoned vehicle is about $50. This is after it has been crunched and shipped to a recycler. They also said that they will usually pick up such vehicles for free.
It seems that if our local authorities find one of these vehicles, they should call one of these salvage companies straight away. I have to believe that like the insurance companies, the towing companies are guaranteed gains without the risk of lost profit. And, once again, the taxpayers are stuck with carrying the burden of risk for these companies.
Gary Shumaker, Laguna Hills
No money from the new fee goes to the towing companies; they only receive the scrap value of the car in return for hauling away and storing the vehicle.
The extra $1 goes to reimburse cities for the time that police officers, dispatchers and supervisors spend to get these cars removed. The Orange County Transportation Authority estimates that the time lost amounts to about $82 per car and says that it can take two to three hours of work by several people to get one of these clunkers towed away legally.
The Sept. 9 column about a proposed bill that would ban all riders from the back of pickup trucks prompted two letters against the idea. The bill was vetoed by Gov. Pete Wilson in October, and the current law bans only children under 12 from the back of pickups.
Denison Dawson of Loara High School in Anaheim wrote: “Why should you try to prohibit riding in the back of trucks? Because you say it’s not safe. Well, neither is driving a car, but you don’t ban driving. I think you need to stop trying so hard to make all the little things illegal and maybe start enforcing bigger issues. Besides, it will just give police something to get ticket-happy about.”
Edward Pfirrmann of Costa Mesa wrote: “Although I am for saving lives, your article on pickup bed riders seems to be one more law that I feel won’t be enforced.”
Pfirrmann then blamed the federal government and auto manufacturers for contributing to highway carnage by allowing and making cars that will travel far beyond the legal speed limits. He concluded: “If drivers would just drive instead of doing everything else but driving, they wouldn’t have accidents. Every time I jump into my vehicle, I consider it a 4,000-pound loaded gun, with the hammer cocked.”
Street Smart received three letters after a wrong-way accident in September on the Santa Ana Freeway. It was the latest in a string of similar wrong-way collisions that have killed seven people and made 1991 the worst year in recent memory for this type of accident.
The letter writers all urged that Caltrans install tire-puncture gates on freeway off-ramps, similar to those used in parking lots or drive-in theaters. All said that the cost of installing such equipment was outweighed by the potential to save lives.
Street Smart dealt with this issue in July, after an earlier wrong-way accident. Local Caltrans spokesman Albert Miranda said that the outcry for puncture gates is a common reaction to these type of accidents.
However, the agency is afraid that the gates would fail under high-speed, heavy use--as opposed to the low speeds they normally handle in parking lots. If the spikes should fail to drop, they could contribute to an accident, he said.
Wayne King of Drivers for Highway Safety wrote after Street Smart reviewed expansion plans for a portion of the Santa Ana Freeway (Aug. 19). The Orange County organization opposes car-pool lanes and sees them as eating up dollars that could be spent on expanding regular freeway lanes. About the Caltrans plan, King wrote:
“At least $400 million is being wasted on car-pool lanes and especially the 4 miles of ‘transitway’ with special-purpose ‘flyover ramps.’ ”
King enclosed a flyer from the organization that shows its estimates of savings that would be gained by eliminating car-pool lanes. Those interested in receiving a copy should write to: Drivers for Highway Safety, 2639 N. Grand Ave. 128, Santa Ana, Calif. 92701.
Finally, way back in May, there was a column about what to do with used motor oil. The county provides dump sites, and some service stations will still accept old oil.
Robert J. Freepartner of Fullerton wrote to suggest that a deposit should be placed on all bottles of oil that are sold. Deposits of about 50 cents would be refunded when original bottles were returned full of used oil. Furthermore, stores selling oil would be required to recover it.
Perhaps someone will work with the idea, but in the meantime, here are two numbers that can help direct you to disposal sites: the Orange County Hazardous Materials Hotline at (714) 744-0516, and the state recycling hot line at (800) 553-2962.
