Police get tough on speeding

A new tool allows Penn Police to issue speeding tickets for the first time. In an effort to maintain order on busy campus thoroughfares, the University Police Department has armed itself with a new tracking device that allows officers to give out speeding tickets for the first time. Police have long been frustrated by a law that prohibits the use of speed-detecting radar in the City of Philadelphia. But the new device purchased late last month computes drivers' speeds without using radar technology, paving the way for more effective enforcement of city speed limits. The issues of pedestrian safety and driver responsibility took on increased significance after a Penn undergraduate and an elderly man taking University courses died weeks ago in separate traffic accidents on campus. And though the problem is multi-faceted, University Police hope that targeting speeders will provide part of the solution. "It's going to be a good device for us, helping drivers slow down as they approach pedestrian traffic," said officer Frank Guille, one of the University Police officers currently using the tracker. No bigger than an alarm clock, the speed tracker is mounted on the dashboard of a police cruiser and calculates the average speed of passing cars based on time and distance. Officers using the tracker park at a specific location and select two stationary objects as points of reference. When a car passes by the first point, the officer switches on the tracker. After the car travels past the second point, the officer switches off the tracker. The device then automatically calculates the car's average speed based on the distance between the two objects and the time it took the car to travel between them. If a car is found to be traveling above the designated limit -- 35 miles per hour on most campus streets -- a second police car stationed further up the street will pull over the motorist. Regulations state that cars clocked with the tracker must be traveling 10 miles per hour over the speed limit for a ticket to be issued. A person driving 50 miles per hour in a 35 mile per hour zone would receive a ticket of $123. During a brief police demonstration near the intersection of 34th and Walnut streets, one car was clocked at 64 miles per hour, which would have resulted in a $171 fine. Most cars were found to be traveling at about 45 miles per hour during the demonstration. University Police Lt. Tom Messner said that Walnut Street is an area of particular concern. "One of the reasons we chose this section is because a lot of people use it to enter the campus area," Messner said. "And we want to control their speed here, so it doesn't continue near 37th, 38th and 39th streets, where there is a lot of foot traffic." Police are also working with city officials to have lines painted on certain campus streets, which would eliminate the need for police to manually measure a distance each time they use the tracker. The lines would also help deter speeding, since motorists will recognize that they are entering a speed zone, Messner said. Guille said that many of the motorists he has stopped with the tracker have shared a sense of disbelief about their careless driving habits. "Most people are surprised they were going as fast as they were," Guille said. "And the second thing they'll say is 'How did you know?'" And while speeding drivers may not be exactly thrilled about receiving a pricey ticket, Messner said the ultimate goal of the new police initiative is to maintain order for both the people on the streets and those behind the wheel. "We're not here to make money on the people," Messner said. "We're here to make the streets safe."

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