Condoning speeding may imperil others

Letters to the Editor (Sun)

Michael Dresser's article "Up to speed" (Feb. 3) exposes the great variation in speed enforcement among Maryland jurisdictions.

In counties such as Montgomery County, police often write speeding tickets that cite speeds of one to nine miles over the posted limit when drivers were going far faster.

Why give them a mere slap on the wrist?

Cpl. Jimmy Robinson, a police spokesman, explained: "We are very proud of the caliber of the citizens" of Montgomery County. He deems it unfair to penalize such drivers with a three-point citation and a fine of hundreds of dollars.

Fair to the speeding drivers? How about to the other citizens of Montgomery County, whose lives are jeopardized by speeders? Is this policy fair to them?

Speeding is a major cause of crashes, especially fatal crashes. Speed increases the likelihood of a crash because a driver has less time to react.

In a crash, higher speed increases the severity of injuries and the chance of fatalities.

I hope counties that make a practice of trivializing speed infractions will begin to consider the rights of other road-users, who deserve protection.

Susan P. Baker
Baltimore

The writer is a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

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