tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post6106698958204351512..comments2024-03-28T07:45:38.843-04:00Comments on Reflections from Crumbly Acres: Surrey RCMP is alienating touristsJenn Jilkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-74876439731726519052014-06-11T10:23:23.684-04:002014-06-11T10:23:23.684-04:00e) In addition, no matter if I knew that the speed...e) In addition, no matter if I knew that the speed limit at playgrounds was 30 km/hr, I wouldn't have known it was a playground, as I said in my post, since there is much foliage hiding it. There was one sign, in the video, indicated it was 30. There was nothing else.<br /> Hubby, who lived 10 years in Vancouver, was trying to read the map!<br /><br />Not only this, but it <a href="http://drivesmartbc.ca/enforcement/traffic-tickets/speed-playground-zone" rel="nofollow">seems as if roadside manner</a> is lacking on the part of many. <br />My local OPP don't hit us with a sledge hammer if it takes a wee smuck to the psyche, which I gave myself!<br />Finally, it is 3 penalty points. It was a mistake, not a deliberate effort to break the law. I've paid for it, but there is a better way.Jenn Jilkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-21823021378898886452014-06-11T06:50:40.208-04:002014-06-11T06:50:40.208-04:00What a thoughtful comment. Well put.
The point i...What a thoughtful comment. Well put. <br /><br />The point is, tourists ought to be welcomed and educated. That said, I am not excusing my behaviour. I paid the fine. I suggest that the time they took to stop me might have been better spent. A few words might have been better. <br /><br />a) I wasn't supposed to be the driver. (Long story.) I missed the signage. Simple mistake. Posted speed limits I can follow, when I spot them. There are issues in that the signage didn't click in my brain. There were cars stopped ahead. I focused on that. <br />b) I am not excusing speeding, I am saying that a wise police force uses an opportunity to <b>educate</b>.<br />c) If a child is in front of you, I don't think you have a hope in hell of missing him/her. That is good information, that 10% of kids are killed at 30km/hr. However, distracted drivers happen at all speeds. There is no excuse. I was distracted by the cops, not watching my speed at that point. The cops were a visible distraction. As a driver for 35 years, your brain kicks into gear, and automatically kicks into awareness mode. It just seemed so incongruous to me.<br />d) No, police cannot differentiate between law-abiding and not. However, the fact that I was a tourist, in a rental car, with an Ontario driver's licence, should have been a clue that this was my first time on this road. Or they could have asked.<br />I asked him the speed limit. He replied, 30 km. Took my licence, determined I wasn't a mass murderer, and left. He returned with the licence and a ticket. Period. I've never met such a curt officer. I was distraught, and embarrassed that I was crying. I was afraid he thought I was using tears to get out of a ticket. I felt dumb. <br /> <br />Jenn Jilkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-53912107848052241942014-06-11T00:20:02.756-04:002014-06-11T00:20:02.756-04:00Hi there,
First off, please don't take my com...Hi there,<br /><br />First off, please don't take my comment as a personal attack, take it as constructive criticism that you and others can learn from.<br /><br />Although I can attest that many people do speed here in Surrey, it's pointless to use other people's bad driving habits as an excuse. If you had happened to hit someone, they aren't going to care that you were stressed or that you were being tailgated. Also, the locals who choose to speed <i>are</i> fined. Believe me, you aren't the only person to ever receive a speeding ticket in Surrey; you in fact said in your article that you could see other cars getting pulled over.<br /><br />Playground speed limits in Ontario may be higher than the ones in BC, but that shouldn't matter. If you are going to drive in another province, it's better to do a couple minutes of research and know for a fact what the speed limits are instead of assuming that they're the same and then getting pulled over.<br /><br />Regardless of the fact that you spent thousands of dollars in your travels to Surrey, you can't use that as an excuse either. If I were speeding through a playground in Ontario where your grandchildren were playing and the police pulled me over, I am sure that they would give me a ticket regardless of the fact that I was just visiting... and why shouldn't they? <br /><br />I'm like you - I try not to speed and am a law-abiding citizen. However, how are police officers supposed to know that? It doesn't matter what kind of people you and I are, what matters is that when rules are broken, there has to be consequences. Surrey RCMP were just doing their job - trying to keep children safe by enforcing the law.<br /><br />It is a fact that pedestrians hit by a car going 30km/hour have a 10% chance of dying. Pedestrians hit by a car going 50km/hour have a 50% chance of dying. That's why it's not enough to just warn someone who was speeding in a playground zone; tickets must be given out so that people learn to follow the speed limits, because if not, the consequences are devastating, no matter where you live.<br /><br />The fact of the matter is that speed kills, and $196 isn't a high price to pay compared to the life of someone hit by a car at 50km/hour.TeenWriterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09191752719062714408noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-82576702712540406012014-06-08T20:51:37.456-04:002014-06-08T20:51:37.456-04:00Jenn
Stand your ground, girl. You make a very VALI...Jenn<br />Stand your ground, girl. You make a very VALID point.<br /><br />Cindy J. Smith<br />Founder, Education for the Driving MassesC.J. Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03325979176373626807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-41870341683218532492014-06-08T20:08:10.754-04:002014-06-08T20:08:10.754-04:00No, people, and I use the term lightly, I am not g...No, people, and I use the term lightly, I am not going to tolerate rudeness and disparaging comments. You have been great to raise my SEO, but I'm tired of the rude, negative, disparaging, and ignorant comments. Deal with it. My opinion of Surrey residents stands, some of you drive too fast, give all your residents a bad rep and your RCMP don't respect your tourists. When I know better I do better. I drove this road twice. Rode it four times. I will likely never be back again.Jenn Jilkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-15857058297779639512014-06-07T09:43:24.311-04:002014-06-07T09:43:24.311-04:00Another question, what is the difference between h...Another question, what is the difference between hitting a child with a car at 30km/hr vs. 50? Are we better able to stop if we aren't paying attention at all? I was watching roads, not signage.Jenn Jilkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-13457754391700063912014-06-06T20:44:56.605-04:002014-06-06T20:44:56.605-04:00Thing is, if I knew better I would have done bette...Thing is, if I knew better I would have done better. The other three times I drove along this street I drove slowly, at the speed limit. Unfortunately, the locals tailed me still, and screamed past me at a horrible speed. <br />Actually, the other two times I drove, we hired a taxi. We will never darken your Surrey streets again.Jenn Jilkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259681360456905055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-57640792860327028202014-06-02T20:08:47.350-04:002014-06-02T20:08:47.350-04:00That is rotten... and perhaps not worth contesting...That is rotten... and perhaps not worth contesting.<br /><br />I might suggest if Surrey has a newspaper, an angrily written letter to the editor.William Kendallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00331324250821836822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-10296089295680858882014-06-02T17:56:06.574-04:002014-06-02T17:56:06.574-04:00Oh, Jenn, how awful.
Let me apologize for the prov...Oh, Jenn, how awful.<br />Let me apologize for the province of my birth.<br />I'm sure there's enough crime in Surrey, BC, without the RCMP bothering to ticket tourists, and I'm so sorry it made you cry.<br />I hope your worst trip ever was made slightly better by breakfast with two Albertans at the airport.<br />Love and hugs,<br />KKay L. Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09966266404058177742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7155086611992337391.post-80162418207869691582014-06-02T06:44:25.170-04:002014-06-02T06:44:25.170-04:00Sorry, $196 does seem a bit much.Sorry, $196 does seem a bit much.Yogi♪♪♪https://www.blogger.com/profile/00411274031147372579noreply@blogger.com