To the editor:

I was disappointed to see that the city commissioners are “calming their enthusiasm for traffic-calming devices.” Obviously none of the commissioners live on a street where the traffic has gotten out of control. The reason the list for traffic-calming devices has become so long is that neighborhoods are becoming increasingly more concerned about the traffic on their residential streets and those traffic problems jeopardizing their safety. It is difficult to be a pedestrian when you feel apprehensive crossing the street in front of your home. I worry about the children in my neighborhood who walk to school.

The commissioners actually discussed performing studies on the effectiveness of these devices (the studies have already been done, they are effective and that is why people hate them), and the commissioners recommended calming strategies that have been shown not to work – policing efforts and electronic speed signs. Like the commissioners, I too have a vision for Lawrence. I dream of cars traveling at the posted speed limit and being able to walk around town without fear of being maimed by a speeding vehicle. I think the city needs to come up with better ways to calm traffic on residential streets. So far, all we have are traffic-calming devices, please don’t take those away from us!

Landra Fair,

Lawrence