One too many cars had whipped by me on East Johnson Street as I stood at the corner, waiting to cross. Short of throwing stones, all I could do was jot down a license plate number and call "the Speeding Hotline." Although unsatisfying, at least it was something. After the third call that week, (and it was only Tuesday) I left a rambling, whiny message asking what really happened to the miscreants I reported.

A polite Officer returned my call, explaining that a letter was sent to the registered owner of the vehicle and that if I wanted to do more, I could borrow "the Speed Board." So I did. After setting up the radar/LED board, I was delighted to see it had an immediate if temporary effect on the pace of the passing traffic. My delight was offset by disappointment and frustration when the board flashed "47 mph" in the 25 mph zone.

The number of people who flipped me off, squealed their tires or floored the accelerator was much higher than I expected. The worst offenders stared straight ahead as I gestured at them and the sign. Adopting a lower-tech method of communicating to the speeders, I stenciled a sign that warned them "Picture Radar Ahead." Kind of like, "Visualize World Peace." The effect was unbelievable. People slowed down, they smiled, they gave me thumbs up, they laughed and waved. I stenciled a bucket "TIPS" and waved it at them. They gave me money, nearly $20 an hour...until the Madison Police Officer told me to pack it up.

Setting up a speed trap, I parked the sign just over a small rise. This resulted in higher readings (35 mph to 45 mph) as there was no advance warning. This lasted until the Madison Parking Monitor moved me on. Hmmm, priorities?

Finally, I called Captain Silverwood. The next morning there was an officer shooting radar down the same block as the sign. As we spoke, our conversation was interrupted as he flipped on lights and siren, pulling over an offender doing 40 mph in the 25 mph zone.

To my wife's relief, the sign goes back today. My cynical side says that the pace of traffic will also go back to where it was. I just keep reminding myself, something is better than nothing and I did all I could.

-Paul Anderson


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