One of the undeniable truths of life in my world is that every stereotype has some basis in fact. Good or bad, it's true. It doesn't mean everyone of that demographic group is the same, but we can all recognize certain behaviors or characteristics that describe enough people to be valid. One of them is the old, retired guy that likes to yell at kids to stay off his lawn and people driving down his street to slow down. We all know a few people like this. I have to catch myself on occasion to keep myself from being that guy. But there are times when it seems appropriate.
Many of you know that the speed limit on Highway 180 from 32nd St. Bypass to Arenas Valley has been reduced from 55 mph to 45 mph. It's been that way for a couple of months now. Traveling east, there are several speed limit signs with red flags or flashing lights to alert drivers to the change. For west bound traffic there aren't as many, but the signs are there. Yet people still drive as if the speed limit has not changed, often traveling in excess of 60 mph.
The change is inconvenient and hard to get used to. But it is necessary. There are too many side roads and hills for people to travel at high rates of speed. Often you don't have much time, maybe a second or two, to determine if it's OK to pull on to the highway because someone's coming over the top of a hill. If they are traveling in excess of the posted speed limit, that is a disaster waiting to happen. And it has happened too often. Look at how many times the state traffic department has to repair a guardrail on that stretch of road. We are lucky more people have not died or been seriously injured.
I entered the insurance industry in 1988, working in claims. Eventually I was assigned to handle the more serious claims that involved significant injury or death. Often there was also a question of who was at fault for the accident. New Mexico is a comparative negligence state which means more than one person can be at fault. Even if somebody pulls out from a side road onto the highway, speed of the person already on the highway is often a significant contributing factor. If the person had simply been traveling at the posted speed limit, the accident likely would not have happened or the consequences would not have been as severe.
We all know the other consequences of speeding, such as getting a ticket, which can be costly in fines and of course increased insurance rates. Getting into an accident will disrupt your life, whether you are the cause of the accident or not. Now your vehicle may not be drivable, which is a huge inconvenience. Your insurance, which is already expensive, will likely increase.
But there was something that I encountered frequently when talking to people involved in these accidents that I never expected. Even if a person was not the cause of the accident, the emotional effect on them of having somebody else seriously injured or killed in the accident was significant. I often saw this in passengers in the vehicles who had no control over the operation of either vehicle. They didn't know the other person. But the emotional trauma they suffered was significant and often long lasting.
It might be inconvenient; it might be annoying; but slowing down will help to avoid much of what I've talked about. Knowing you could have avoided most of the consequences I've written about simply by being prudent is another emotion you don't want to deal with. So I'll be that guy for a moment; SLOW DOWN! And stay off my lawn too.
