As I was driving to work the other day, I was thinking about radar detectors.
They are illegal where I live, but I disagree with that.
First, I don't think that technology can be effectively legislated. Once the genie is out of the bottle, that's it - no going back. Human nature being what it is, people will always try to find a work around. I think it is foolish to deny the human factor when passing legislation. And, as engineers will willingly tell us, the more complex something becomes, the easier it is to break. The same goes for legislation. The more amendments, exceptions and special allowances there are, the easier it becomes to find a way around it.
Second, I think most people who purchase radar detectors aren't doing so to speed recklessly on public roads, but to avoid tickets if they are over the speed limit. If legislators are trying to keep speeds down, then I would think a technological approach, or an approach that takes into account the human factor, would be more effective.
In the old days, you used to occasionally see a fully marked patrol car, parked very conspicuously at the side of the road. Traffic would slow down, and only when you went by, did you realize the car was empty. But, it did it's job slowing down traffic. Why not use a device that can trigger radar detectors, causing those who use them to slow down. The net effect is the same, traffic slows down to the posted limits. The only downside is the loss of ticket revenue - assuming that the whole exercise is to slow traffic down, and not generate revenue.
Yes, it is a game of cat and mouse - but isn't that exactly what is happening now as drivers speed up after seeing a patrol car figuring the road ahead is clear of enforcement?
The goal should be safety, not revenue.
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