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Speed limits: we have all ignored them at one point or another. Some of us my just have a lead foot, others may only do it occasionally. The problem is that speeding, on the surface, seems harmless. But, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speeding endangers everyone on the road. On their website, in 2018, speeding was responsible for 9,378 deaths and a contributing factor is 26% of all traffic fatalities in 2018.

Speeding changes things: It creates a greater potential for loss of vehicle control.

It reduces the effectiveness of the occupant protection equipment.

It Greatly reduces stopping distance after you perceive a danger.

It increases the degree of crash severity leading to more injuries.

It decreases your reaction time because you close in on a danger faster.

It changes the economic implications of the crash.

The bottom line? Speeding is dangerous.

If you take a look around the various Cottage Grove social media groups, each week there are posts about this street being like a racetrack or that street having crazy drivers. The Cottage Grove PD is well aware of the problem they face with speeding drivers, so they are joining agencies all over the state to help educate people about the dangers of speeding.

Cottage Grove Police Chief Pete Koerner explained, “You know, really, in the last year, we’ve seen a huge increase in complaints on speeders, and traditionally, every year, as the weather gets nice, we always see an increase. But, you know, if you look at the different statistics that are out there, this is turning out to be an extremely deadly year, and you know, that is speed related. So, I think a couple things is, we like to be responsive to the neighborhood complaints, and that’s really where we get a lot of them. Our Public Safety Board, the last year, bought two portable signs as well. You know, so that’s just kind of a part of it with the deterrent to have that also. Then we can kind of monitor what times we have speeds and whatnot. Then we’re not just out patrolling aimlessly. Then we can kind of target our education enforcement in certain neighborhoods.”

Education is a huge piece of the process, simply reminding folks that speed limits are in place for a reason and getting them to slow down. For every 10 miles per hour you are travelling, you travel roughly an extra 14 feet per second. At 30 miles per hour, you travel 44 feet per second and at 40 miles per hour, that jumps to 58.67 feet per second. In three seconds, that is difference of about 43 feet. In residential areas, that 43 feet could be the difference between life or death for a child darting our after a loose ball.

The goal is to get people to slow down and if people don’t, they may get a warning or they may get a ticket according to Chief Koerner. “It’s gonna be a combination, obviously you know, if we’re in a high complaint area, we really will want to saturate those areas. And a big part of what we do we want to educate, but when you start to get those speeds that are 10 to 12 over in a residential area that’s more of a ticket. The one that’s not quite as much, that’s going to be the one more of an educational thing. But in the month of May, statewide, they’re going to kick off more. They’re going to really focus on speed across the state with that towards zero deaths. So you’ll see State Patrol and a lot of different departments, us included, will partner with some other agencies to do some saturation patrols, that will be specifically for speed.”

The Police Department spent time making a great video discussing speed and how the accidents they deal with stick with them. Tragic deaths from speeding can be avoided, but when it happens, and an officer has to notify a parent that their 16-yearold son or daughter was ejected from a speeding car that hit a tree, they don’t forget that. The problem is, they cannot be everywhere. See SPEEDING Page 3 Speeding From Page 1

“Anytime a resident has concerns, we encourage them to call and we do pass that along at roll call for officers. You know, unless we hear about it, we don’t know sometimes. So I think if there is an issue, a lot of people seem to think ’we don’t want to bother you’, but that’s what we’re here for. You know, we’ll do the traffic whether it’s enforcement and education, and you know, sometimes then the officers will partner up and kind of use the laser and hit certain areas and just to really get people to slow down,” Chief Koerner added.

Extra patrols are out there, working to slow people down. If you happen to live on a racetrack of a road, don’t hesitate to call the PD at 651-458-2850. They have a couple new radar wagons that are a great way to track speed on your street and they double as a deterrent to speeders.

Most importantly, drive safe and obey speed limits.

This smaller speed sign can be moved around town to collect data on traffic speeds. When a vehicle approaches faster than the programmed limit, the sign flashes. If the vehicle is more than 5 MPH over the limit, a strobe turns on as well to alert the driver to slow down significantly. Photo Courtesy of CGPD

A Cottage Grove PD squad car parked next to one of the new signs that alerts the driver if they are speeding. Photo Courtesy of CGPD