Crosswalk Sting Snags Buellton Motorists

If that one motorist failed to stop in time while listening to music, does it mean she hit him, the plainclothes officer? I wonder how all the kids who play out on the streets & others who wander around there ever survive the speeding drivers who listen to music or those on cell phones or who are waving their hands while talking. But to assume drivers will see or stop for you while in a cross-walk is sheer folley.

Nothing Better To Do With Their Time ??

pedestrian right of way is extremely dangerous and gives people a false sense of security. the city puts flashing yellow lights on the signs, but flashing yellow does not mean stop. people come running out into the street without looking, start walking before the lights are on, or cross late, bikes make sudden turns onto the crosswalks, or enter the crossing "at speed", and a lot of the time the lights will just be flashing with no pedestrian around at all. by the way what are bikers rights in regards to crosswalks anyway, i thought they were treated like cars and had to follow normal road rules. (if you are crossing the street dont ever expect a bicycle to stop for you whether you are on the crosswalk or not).

personally i never cross at random crosswalks unless there are no cars coming, I always go out of my way to go to a light. i think these things may just be a money trap for the city. dont get me started on the dangers of people getting comfortable with this system in santa barbara and then visiting a different city or country where the cars have the right of way (pretty much everywhere).

bottom line is, people still need to be aware of their surroundings, and look both ways before they cross. if you think that crosswalk is going to save you and that you are protected by your "right of way", tell it to your ambulance driver.

If this operation saves one life, places the critical idea into just one distracted motorist's mind that when you are behind the wheel of an automobile you must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and obey all other laws of the highway, then it has been a success.

I say more of these stings should be conducted until people come to their common senses. On the other side of the issue, something should be done to cite and fine the swarm of pedestrians who blithely walk against the red light in downtown Santa Barbara. It is a daily occurrence and has gone seemingly viral in its scope.

And while we're at it: 1. Ban cars on State Street from Anapamu to Gutierrez permanently. 2. Get a stop sign at De La Vina Street at Arrellaga so the 101 crossers can do so safely and without causing yet another needless accident due to the ubiquitous speeders who rocket down De La Vina. 3. Wasn't there a law passed AGAINST talking & texting on cell phones while driving? 2-minutes on any street or highway indicates otherwise. Pull over before you chat and Twitter, you cell-zombies!

Finally an opportunity to get some sense into this whole pedestrian right of way nonsense.

Pedestrians can choose to cross anywhere and at anytime.
To require motorists to bring 2 tons of metal to a halt and then re-accelerate that same mass so that a pedestrian doesn't have to wait a few seconds for it to pass is assinine. Everybody is so concerned about green house gasses and global warming but nobody considers, the amount of fuel burned to accomodate some self righteous pedestrian trying to make a point about their right of way.
If the road is too busy for a pedestrian to cross, then the prudent thing to do is get to a light; not wander out into busy traffic assuming that it is going to see you and stop.

I taught my kids to depend on themselves, their eyes and ears and not some airhead cellphone-talking idiot driver to stop for them. I taught them that traffic lights are just that...lights! They are not some barrier protecting them. They learned that their only real protection from inattentive drivers is their own judgement, even when they have the green light.
There are exceptions (the blind, etc.) but pedestrian safety is a shared responsibility. Being a pedestrian isn't a license for being inconsiderate or stupid.

As if Buellton isn't a bad enough Speed Trap as it is. Anyone chancing going thru a Yellow Light is promised a Ticket and the same can be said if you are 3 mph over the limit even if the signage there sucks. You have been warned, they make their limit in that area every day.