A Logical Look at Speed Bumps
My street is of the few in the area without speed bumps, at night it’s common to hear cars accelerating out of the turn , and during the day you just see it. this would make most of us think about speed bumps, but like everything, both sides first, some statistics, and then see if the neighborhood would collectively agree on placing speed bumps.
The American Journal of Public Health states that “speed bumps were associated with lower odds of children being injured within their neighborhood (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.47) and being hit in front of their home (adjusted OR = 0.40). Our findings suggest that speed humps make children’s living environments safer”. The journal also stated that Pedestrian injuries caused by automobile collisions are a leading cause of death among children aged 5 to 14 years old.
https://www.reliance-foundry.com/blog/speed-humps-effective
Low socioeconomic status also increases the likely hood of such an incident. There are many examples of this such as the case of Zamar jones a 7-year-old boy who died due to a fatal shooting perpetrated by a speeding driver who was shooting and crashed his vehicle and then took another vehicle and drove off according to the article written by Ximena Conde For why.org.
I also looked at alternatives for speed bumps and I came across a company called Radarsign which is exactly that, a speed limit sign with a radar that tells you your speed. Now the company claims that Speed bumps are expensive costing between 4K-7K each. They also point out that every bump cost fire trucks 10 seconds in response time. Reduce property values, wear down vehicles, cause more pollution, and reduce fuel efficiency. This sounds like a lot of things against speed bumps, but they could help save a life, and you can’t put a price on that.
I decided to go ask some questions to the longtime residents of the street what they thought about the idea. The first to talk to me was Mr. Borrego who said that in the past, “a driver who was speeding at night lost control at the turn and slid into a telephone pole placed In front of my house.” He then mentioned always wanting speed bumps because of the kids that play in front of his house.
The next person I asked was Mrs. Marcela who I recall got her mailbox and fence damaged by a car, I asked her about this incident, and she told me the driver was tipsy and not actually speeding. She said that she would appreciate if the city placed speed bumps. The department that handles road infrastructure told me that when it comes to speed bumps the state has to come down and analyze the area the see if it requires speed bumps or not. This is because some streets need it while others don’t because they could be avoided or become a hindrance. I hope that by putting pressure on the city they will feel oblige and place speed bumps.
References
Tester, J. M., Rutherford, G. W., Wald, Z., & Rutherford, M. W. (2004). A matched case-control study evaluating the effectiveness of speed humps in reducing child pedestrian injuries. American journal of public health, 94(4), 646–650. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.94.4.646
Why municipalities are moving away from speed humps. (2020, February 03). Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.radarsign.com/why-municipalities-are-moving-away-from-speed-humps/
Conde, X. (2020, August 19). Less traffic, less RISK: ZAMAR Jones’ neighbors pitch speed bumps as a violence deterrent. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://whyy.org/articles/less-traffic-less-risk-zamar-jones-neighbors-pitch-speed-bumps-as-a-violence-deterrent/