The in basket: Wally Carlson thinks a carrot would be preferable to a stick with those “Your speed is…” signs, notably the one on McWilliams Road just west of Highway 303.
“Wouldn’t it be smarter if you were driving the speed limit of 25… that the sign would reward you with a poker hand or “Way to go, dude” or “Good on ya..” rather than go negative with ‘Slow down!!!!!”
“A little positive reinforcement would be more fun and get your speed down. It’s not brain surgery..it’s just a computer,” he said.
The out basket: That’s the same sign that a year ago brought a suggestion to the Road Warrior column from 7-year-old Adrian Tittle that it tell drivers going too slow to speed up as well as telling them to slow down when they’re speeding. There’s something about it that inspires creative thinking.
Doug Bear of county public works says the sign’s message is programmed by the manufacturer and the county can’t change it.
He said they’ve sent Wally’s suggestion on to the manufacturer for its consideration, but if we start seeing congratulatory electronic signs for those doing the speed limit, I’ll be surprised.
