I admit I drive too fast so you can imagine my delight in knowing 
that it's speeders like me who decide the speed limit. That's right the fastest 15 percent of drivers decide the speed: if we drive 60 mph, that's the speed limit
You can imagine how happy that makes my wife who's always nagging me to slow down. I can now respond happily, "But honey the speed limit on Desoto Avenue is 50 now, not 40."
That's right, folks, thanks to the greed and ingenuity of your City Council member and the handsomely paid employees of your city Department of Transportations speed limits are going up all over the Valley right now by 5 to 10 mph.
I know that doesn't make a lot of sense but when you wade through this, you'll understand the law is as crazy as the lawmakers and the craziest of all are your L.A. officials who care so little about you that they would put your lives at risk for the money they get from speeding tickets.
This is about greed, not the safety of children or other
pedestrians or even the law-abiding safe drivers.
The purpose is to keep the cash from traffic fines coming into the bottomless pit of the city treasury that's spending far more than it takes in and is facing a half billion deficit. To do that, they need to keep the radar guns legal and state law requires periodic updates on how fast traffic is moving so the speed limit gets adjusted to the speed of traffic.
The update -- which is now under way across the Valley where motorists can drive fast during off-peak hours on wide streets -- is required to be able to use radar guns to catch speeders. So the city goes out when traffic is light in off-peak hours and measures the speed of the first 100 cars that go by. The slowest 85 don't matter. It's the 86th that sets the speed limit.
"The public votes with the gas pedal,'' traffic engineer Alan Willis
explained today at the Transportation Commission meeting where
a new round of speed limit increases were approved.
These included Victory Boulevard between the 405 and Shoup
Avenue, Desoto from Ventura Boulevard north to the 118,
Balboa Boulevard north from Ventura to Foothill Boulevard.
Can you believe those streets are all in my neighborhood. I just hope I was driver No. 86.
that it's speeders like me who decide the speed limit. That's right the fastest 15 percent of drivers decide the speed: if we drive 60 mph, that's the speed limitYou can imagine how happy that makes my wife who's always nagging me to slow down. I can now respond happily, "But honey the speed limit on Desoto Avenue is 50 now, not 40."
That's right, folks, thanks to the greed and ingenuity of your City Council member and the handsomely paid employees of your city Department of Transportations speed limits are going up all over the Valley right now by 5 to 10 mph.
I know that doesn't make a lot of sense but when you wade through this, you'll understand the law is as crazy as the lawmakers and the craziest of all are your L.A. officials who care so little about you that they would put your lives at risk for the money they get from speeding tickets.
This is about greed, not the safety of children or other
pedestrians or even the law-abiding safe drivers. The purpose is to keep the cash from traffic fines coming into the bottomless pit of the city treasury that's spending far more than it takes in and is facing a half billion deficit. To do that, they need to keep the radar guns legal and state law requires periodic updates on how fast traffic is moving so the speed limit gets adjusted to the speed of traffic.
The update -- which is now under way across the Valley where motorists can drive fast during off-peak hours on wide streets -- is required to be able to use radar guns to catch speeders. So the city goes out when traffic is light in off-peak hours and measures the speed of the first 100 cars that go by. The slowest 85 don't matter. It's the 86th that sets the speed limit.
"The public votes with the gas pedal,'' traffic engineer Alan Willis
explained today at the Transportation Commission meeting where
a new round of speed limit increases were approved.
These included Victory Boulevard between the 405 and Shoup
Avenue, Desoto from Ventura Boulevard north to the 118,
Balboa Boulevard north from Ventura to Foothill Boulevard.
Can you believe those streets are all in my neighborhood. I just hope I was driver No. 86.
Ron Kaye is the former editor of the Los Angeles Daily News where he spent 23 years helping to make the newspaper the voice of the San Fernando Valley and fighting for a city government that serves the people and not special interests.
Twice in recent years, Los Angeles Magazine listed Kaye among the city’s most influential people, specifically in the area of politics. Kaye has been variously described in the media as the “accidental anarchist,” “the Patrick Henry of the San Fernando Valley” and a “passionate populist.” He is now committed to
carrying on his crusade for a greater Los Angeles as an ordinary citizen. Previously, Ron worked at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner,
Associated Press, Cleveland Plain Dealer and The Australian as well as papers
in Fairbanks, Alaska and Yakima, Wash. He also wrote for Newsweek magazine, The Guardian in London and the National Enquirer.
Ron, thanks for bringing the newest scam to the forefront!
Honestly, every single thing this corrupt bunch of gangsters downtown does is fraught with stealing our money! Never before in my many decades in this city have I ever seen such blatant, flagrant corruption! We just MUST get rid of this den of iniquity and thieves!
I am also disturbed by the fact that they take such glee in squandering our money...and then DEMAND more from us! I'm sure that after each new tax, fine and fee is forced upon us...they high-5 each other and open up a bottle of Tequilla to celebrate another coup!
It's too bad the Valley has lost its true speedways such as San Fernando and (not in the Valley but close) most recently in Palmdale.
My dad at age 68 is an avid drag racer and has to drive to Bakersfield to race. The yuppies have run off the dragstrips and now grandpa has no place to play.
If there was a local dragstrip it might discourage some kids from street racing. They did at San Pedro with Big Willie who got the gangsters to switch from banging to dragging.
The reason the speed limits have to be raised is that state law stipulates that speed limits can't be set at the whim of the elected officials. An engineering study must be conducted so that there is some basis to set the speed limit. Engineers have determined with many studies throughout the years that 85 percent of the drivers drive at a safe and prudent speed and that 15 percent do not. So speed limits are set according to the 85th percentile. If this was not done you could be driving through a small town that has set up an unreasonable speed traps and receive a ticket for not obeying a speed limit which has only been set too low in order to get additional revenue.
The LA city Council has no choice but to set the speed limits using the procedure mandated by state law. If it does not then the speed limit laws cannot be enforced legally and a percentage of people will drive even faster knowing that they can't be issued citations by the police department.
Steve's almost right.
The State law mandating the 85 percentile formula is only a requirement IF the city is using radar on that particular street.
The City is not prevented from employing traffic calming or road diet techniques, if it is serious about controlling speeding motorist.
The City is not prevented from lowering the speed limit and using means other than radar to deter speeding or control speeding motorists.
The City is also not prevented from communicating with the public and allowing the community to participate in the decisions that are being made on behalf of the people.