PD: Sebastopol tries to put the brakes on speeders

[Barry]

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Sebastopol tries to put the brakes on speeders

Sebastopol tries to put the brakes on speeders | PressDemocrat.com | The Press Democrat | Santa Rosa, CA (https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20100107/articles/100109622)

By BOB NORBERG ([email protected])
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Published: Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 4:48 p.m.


Sebastopol, which glories in its well-deserved reputation for strict traffic enforcement, is launching a public relations program asking drivers to slow down when going through town.

Police issue more speeding tickets in Sebastopol than any other city of its size in Sonoma County. But that hasn’t stopped residents from complaining about traffic scofflaws.

“The No. 1 complaint is regarding traffic, mostly speeding cars, usually on neighborhood streets,” said police Chief Jeff Weaver. “If I was to add up all the complaints I get about thefts, drug use, gangs or violent crime, it would not equal traffic complaints.”

Since the department doesn’t have the staff to station police officers in the neighborhoods, the next best thing is to post signs asking people to drive slowly, Weaver said.

“The staffing is the same as in 1986. I still have 14 police officers. We don’t have the time to devote to traffic as we once did,” Weaver said. “If this helps fill the gap, great.”

As part of the program, expected to cost $640, signs and banners proclaiming “Slow Down Sebastopol,” with the city seal and police department shield, will be posted at the entrances to the city, on some civic buildings and in some neighborhoods.

In addition, Weaver said the city will install permanent electronic signs that read a vehicle’s speed in the eastbound lanes of Bodega Avenue in west Sebastopol, and a third portable reader will be available to put at areas where speed or collisions are a problem.

There will not be an increase in enforcement, but Sebastopol already writes more tickets than other small departments.

In 2009, the department made 7,144 traffic stops, many related to the burgeoning downtown tavern scene, compared to 6,004 in 2008, Weaver said.

Officers issued 334 speeding tickets, compared to 641 in 2008.

In comparison, in the city of Healdsburg, which has a similarly-sized department, officers made 2,982 traffic stops and wrote 45 speeding tickets in 2009.

In Cloverdale, officers made 1,933 traffic stops and wrote 67 speeding tickets in 2009.

Sebastopol has a reputation for aggressively enforcing speed limits, dating back to 1974, when the department hired an officer with traffic safety funds, Weaver said.

“For a long time, the Sebastopol police had a ruthless reputation for speed enforcement,” Weaver said. “I grew up in Santa Rosa and I knew that when you got to the Sebastopol city limits, you slowed down.”

That officer gave Weaver’s sister a speeding ticket when she was hurrying to church to play the piano, and he also gave the department’s current dispatcher a ticket, Weaver said.

“I love it,” Weaver said. “I am comfortable with the strict enforcement of the traffic laws because it saves lives.”

Copyright © 2010 PressDemocrat.com — All rights reserved. Restricted use only.

[Tars]

Officers issued 334 speeding tickets, compared to 641 in 2008.

In comparison, in the city of Healdsburg, which has a similarly-sized department, officers made 2,982 traffic stops and wrote 45 speeding tickets in 2009.

In Cloverdale, officers made 1,933 traffic stops and wrote 67 speeding tickets in 2009.

Which only demonstrates that Sebastopol isn't anywhere near the same type of community as either Healdsburg or Cloverdale. Remove 101 access from Healdsburg and Cloverdale, make all north county commuters drive through those towns, and we'd see similar levels of ticketing as in Sebastopol.

Anyone has to drive through Sebastopol during commute times knows why the town produces more tickets.

About the "burgeoning tavern scene" in Sebastopol. The writer must be referring solely to Hopmonk. Other bar owners say their business is down. More unemployment means more "at-home" or package store drinkers.

[tommy]

What a joke! With all due respect to Chief Weaver, there might be a few other reasons they give out all those speeding tickets.




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Sebastopol tries to put the brakes on speeders

Sebastopol tries to put the brakes on speeders | PressDemocrat.com | The Press Democrat | Santa Rosa, CA (https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20100107/articles/100109622)

By BOB NORBERG ([email protected])
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Published: Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 4:48 p.m.


Sebastopol, which glories in its well-deserved reputation for strict traffic enforcement, is launching a public relations program asking drivers to slow down when going through town.

Police issue more speeding tickets in Sebastopol than any other city of its size in Sonoma County. But that hasn’t stopped residents from complaining about traffic scofflaws.

“The No. 1 complaint is regarding traffic, mostly speeding cars, usually on neighborhood streets,” said police Chief Jeff Weaver. “If I was to add up all the complaints I get about thefts, drug use, gangs or violent crime, it would not equal traffic complaints.”

Since the department doesn’t have the staff to station police officers in the neighborhoods, the next best thing is to post signs asking people to drive slowly, Weaver said.

“The staffing is the same as in 1986. I still have 14 police officers. We don’t have the time to devote to traffic as we once did,” Weaver said. “If this helps fill the gap, great.”

As part of the program, expected to cost $640, signs and banners proclaiming “Slow Down Sebastopol,” with the city seal and police department shield, will be posted at the entrances to the city, on some civic buildings and in some neighborhoods.

In addition, Weaver said the city will install permanent electronic signs that read a vehicle’s speed in the eastbound lanes of Bodega Avenue in west Sebastopol, and a third portable reader will be available to put at areas where speed or collisions are a problem.

There will not be an increase in enforcement, but Sebastopol already writes more tickets than other small departments.

In 2009, the department made 7,144 traffic stops, many related to the burgeoning downtown tavern scene, compared to 6,004 in 2008, Weaver said.

Officers issued 334 speeding tickets, compared to 641 in 2008.

In comparison, in the city of Healdsburg, which has a similarly-sized department, officers made 2,982 traffic stops and wrote 45 speeding tickets in 2009.

In Cloverdale, officers made 1,933 traffic stops and wrote 67 speeding tickets in 2009.

Sebastopol has a reputation for aggressively enforcing speed limits, dating back to 1974, when the department hired an officer with traffic safety funds, Weaver said.

“For a long time, the Sebastopol police had a ruthless reputation for speed enforcement,” Weaver said. “I grew up in Santa Rosa and I knew that when you got to the Sebastopol city limits, you slowed down.”

That officer gave Weaver’s sister a speeding ticket when she was hurrying to church to play the piano, and he also gave the department’s current dispatcher a ticket, Weaver said.

“I love it,” Weaver said. “I am comfortable with the strict enforcement of the traffic laws because it saves lives.”

Copyright © 2010 PressDemocrat.com — All rights reserved. Restricted use only.

[RussianRiverRattina]

Good. Speeders totally tick me off. I just don't get it. Automobiles provide the most personally comfortable, quick, convenient, & economical form of transportation ever known to humankind, for which we pay an enormous & incalculable societal & environmental price. Yet this high level of personal convenience simply isn't CONVENIENT ENOUGH for some people. They think it's okay to act like a spoiled, impatient toddler on a rampage while controlling 3-6 tons of machinery. When speeders can't go as fast as they want because the drivers ahead of them choose to obey the speed limit, they tailgate & intimidate instead of thinking, "Gee, maybe these people have a good REASON for driving the speed limit." Or even, "Gee, maybe this is a speed trap & someone has a radar detector." Maybe these immature, obnoxious drivers would behave better if we hired preschool teachers as highway patrollers.

[theindependenteye]

>>>What a joke! With all due respect to Chief Weaver, there might be a few other reasons they give out all those speeding tickets.

Well, yes, that's true, there might be. They might be power-mad; they might want to instill fear and blind obedience, preparatory to a coup d'etat; they might get a cut of the bucks; they might need to fill a quota for promotion; they might be eco-terrorists trying to put a stop to all automobiles; they might be wanting to look down ladies' blouses. Other options, anyone?

Whether any of those are true or not, personally I'm retro enough to feel that laws should be enforced. We all have our favorite laws and those we feel are horrible and unjust and should be changed. I've broken some of the latter myself, so I admit I speak as a card-carrying hypocrite.

But to me, speed laws need to be enforced, and I do my best to stay within them, despite that ol' engine just dying to push a little faster. On the freeway, for safety's sake, I tend to go with the flow, but not more than 5 mph above the limit. Through town, I believe the speed limits should be strictly observed and enforced.

As for the cops: Criticize them for beating people up or being nasty or taking payoffs or trying to act like the cops on cop shows, but not for doing their job.

Peace & joy—
Conrad

[marko]

Relatives of the Chief get tickets....the Chief likes the strict enforcement....sounds like fair enforcement designed to NOT hand out a ton of tickets, just to get ya'll to FOLLOW THE SPEED LIMITS. Sounds like intelligent enforcement. What's so hard about that????????? Good work,Seb.


What a joke! With all due respect to Chief Weaver, there might be a few other reasons they give out all those speeding tickets.

[Ben Zolno]

What a joke! With all due respect to Chief Weaver, there might be a few other reasons they give out all those speeding tickets.

I, too, thought that this speed trapping was to make money, but now that I see they issue a ticket for less than 5% of their stops, seems like slowing really is the main motivation these folks have.

I personally love the idea people are forced to slow down around town. Good for business, as people can see places they might be more inclined to go if they actually have time to see them, kills less drivers, pedestrians and bikers, reduces greenhouse gases etc.

We'll see how I feel when I get the ticket. :):

[Imagery]

Honestly, I'd LOVE to see Sebastopol hire at least 4 more officers to do NOTHING except patrol Main St. and Petaluma Ave. With the tickets they'd write, they'd not only pay for themselves, they'd ensure a sizable budget surplus for the City every year.

I quit counting how many times people drive at least 15-20 over the posted limit (in the left lane), then at the gas station, they cut off whoever they have to in order to get into the through (right) lane. If they put an officer at the gas station, his full-time job would be to simply pull over the motorists who participate in such reckless driving.

I've also quit counting how many times I've seen people speeding past Sebastopol Auto Body doing at least 15 over, and run through the crosswalk with someone crossing the street. Near misses are at least a daily occurrence.

I'm all for stricter traffic enforcement. I don't think they'd concern themselves with those going 2-3 mph over, because they'd have more than enough "customers" to deal with by looking at everyone who's 10+ over the limit.

[localsupporter]

>>>What a joke! With all due respect to Chief Weaver, there might be a few other reasons they give out all those speeding tickets.

Well, yes, that's true, there might be. They might be power-mad; they might want to instill fear and blind obedience, preparatory to a coup d'etat; they might get a cut of the bucks; they might need to fill a quota for promotion; they might be eco-terrorists trying to put a stop to all automobiles; they might be wanting to look down ladies' blouses. Other options, anyone?

Whether any of those are true or not, personally I'm retro enough to feel that laws should be enforced. We all have our favorite laws and those we feel are horrible and unjust and should be changed. I've broken some of the latter myself, so I admit I speak as a card-carrying hypocrite.

But to me, speed laws need to be enforced, and I do my best to stay within them, despite that ol' engine just dying to push a little faster. On the freeway, for safety's sake, I tend to go with the flow, but not more than 5 mph above the limit. Through town, I believe the speed limits should be strictly observed and enforced.

As for the cops: Criticize them for beating people up or being nasty or taking payoffs or trying to act like the cops on cop shows, but not for doing their job.

Peace & joy—
Conrad

Hah!

Police officers doing their jobs well? I think NOT! IT'S A CONSPIRACY. They are out to get us! It can't possibly have anything to do with the LAW.

They should all be fired for doing their jobs!

And that Chief Weaver guy, he might be apart of the illumanati and is trying to take over the world....one ticket at a time.


We need to call Karl Rove right now and start an anti police campaign in sebastopol. First...get rid of the police. Then the youth! Then we wont need the police to protect us from those scary guys!

*before work sarcasm time is now over.
...

[Tars]

“The staffing is the same as in 1986. I still have 14 police officers. We don’t have the time to devote to traffic as we once did,” Weaver said. “If this helps fill the gap, great.”

It's mis-leading to say that the number of police in Sebastopol hasn't increased. Strictly, it may be true - within the city limits. But outside the city limits, which are well within the confines of the community of Sebastopol, do we have only the same number of Sonoma County Sheriffs that we had in 1986?

[Imagery]

It's mis-leading to say that the number of police in Sebastopol hasn't increased. Strictly, it may be true - within the city limits. But outside the city limits, which are well within the confines of the community of Sebastopol, do we have only the same number of Sonoma County Sheriffs that we had in 1986?

Considering the Chief of Police for THE CITY of Sebastopol commented regarding the department under his control, he was perfectly accurate. The Sheriff's Department is a separate entity, but in the interests of clearing that up, there are only a handful of officers that patrol Zone 4 of this county.

Zone 4 stretches from Cotati in the south to Forestville/River Rd. in the north, along the 116 corridor, and west to Bloomfield and Valley Ford in the west.

It's rather rare to see the Sheriff's Department enforcing speed laws unless a flagrant violation has taken place.