Personally, I hate speed bumps.   They are aggravating and bad for the car.   They cost money.    I would much rather see law enforcement write tickets, thus CREATING revenue, than us spending money to place speed bumps.

Having said that, I do understand why a parent of small children would request one.   As they see cars speeding down their road, they know that at that speed, reaction time would be limited.   For the safety of their children and pets, they want cars to slow down.  Speed bumps DO accomplish that.

During my tenure on City Council, I have voted against almost all speed bumps that have been presented to us.   I have only voted affirmative for two.   The first one was a request by First Baptist Church of Hawkinsville.  They owned both sides of the street and children were often running to their parent’s vehicles after meeting times.   This one made sense to me.

The second one was requested by a mother on a busy street.  She had gotten almost all her neighbors to agree.    So I voted for it.

One that I voted against was requested by a good friend of mine.  He called and requested it right in front of his house.   I told him of my disdain for them, but I also correctly informed him that if it was brought up, it would probably pass.   He asked me to bring it up.  So…   I made the motion to place a speed bump in front of his house.  The motion was seconded and then I voted against it.   That got a few strange looks.    Why would I make the motion and then vote against it?   Simple:   A citizen had a request and it was worthy of discussion and a vote.   But even after bringing it up, my disdain for them remained so I voted against it.   It passed 4 to 1.

Subsequently, we have had more drama with speed bumps.   So in November of 2013, I made the following motion:

“Any time a citizen requests a speed bump, the city will place a radar detection unit on that street.   This radar detection system will record the number and speed of all traffic on that street for a period of at least two weeks.  This will allow us to see if there truly is a need.  Does the traffic warrant it?  Are cars speeding down the road?  Then one of two things will take place.   If the homeowner lives in a section that has a homeowner’s association, we will require that the homeowners association take a vote and submit that vote to us.    If the homeowner does NOT live in a section that has a homeowner’s association, the city will poll every household that lives on that street from stop sign to stop sign and determine the neighborhood’s feel for having a speed bump placed on their street.   All of the above information will then be presented at the next regularly scheduled city commission meeting, where a vote will be taken.”

The motion was passed.  Hopefully this will place a little more accountability on the process.

What are your thoughts on speed bumps?   Do they work?  Are they worthwhile?  What alternatives would you suggest?   I represent the citizens of Hawkinsville, so knowing your thoughts on these issues will help me decide how to vote.   While speed bumps are not the most important decisions that we make, they do effect our lives DAILY as we have to drive over them.   They merit discussion.   Tell me YOUR opinion!