When Will It Get Better, Reckless Driving

            Reckless driving is still a big issue in the city, county and state. City officials, led by Mayor Cavalier Johnson, are fighting hard to try and slow down and eventually wipe out this issue. Almost every day now there is another story in the news about these incidents. It seems that many of the incidents are even getting worse if you can believe that. I don’t know if people are not just paying attention or just driving too fast. Driving around the city I see numerous traffic accidents at intersections controlled by traffic lights or stop signs. It is obvious that someone, in each case, has either run a traffic light or stop sign. There are too many people that are not driving defensively on the road. Do you remember when you first learned how to drive? Think back once and remember one of the main things the driving instructor or your parents told you. Drive defensively and always look out for the other guy. You avoid many traffic accidents every day when you do this.

            The past few days there have been two high profile reckless driving type accidents in the city here. When I come to an intersection as usual, I stop, of course. And look very carefully before I pull off. It’s just amazing how many people are routinely running lights and stop signs. Some people stop and then just go through, or some just go through without stopping at all. I would recommend that everyone use caution when pulling up and stopping at these intersections. Now let’s get back to the two incidents I referred to earlier. The first incident was over the weekend and occurred in the area of Sherman and Burleigh Street. The 23-year-old female driver was southbound on N Sherman.  She had the red light. A county bus was eastbound on W Burleigh with the green light. The driver in the car blew the light hitting the bus at a good rate of speed. The driver was arrested and a two-year old in the car is fighting for his life.

            The second incident occurred when several juveniles were in a stolen car in the area of 80^th and Mill Road, by an MPS school. There is video that has been shown on TV that pictures two youths hanging out of windows as the vehicle was weaving down the street. The driver loses control and crashes into a parked school bus. Then it hits a few other vehicles. The video shows several people running from the vehicle. A 15-year-old in one of the windows is now fighting for his life. Police are asking for the public’s help to find out who was in the vehicle. An 11-year-old on the bus was thrown around and injured in the accident. He is at home now, currently recovering. I hate to say this, but it appears this is almost getting to be routine which is a horrible thing to think.

            The mayors Road construction, police enforcement, plus hopefully the red-light cameras coming in the future, will all help to make this situation better.