Neighbors band together to fight speeders

When Joe Baxter's son Kevin was little, he used to ride his bike on Mountain Street and play baseball in the lot across the way.

Because of speeding cars in the neighborhood these days, however, that kind of play is not safe, he said.

He sat in a chair on the lawn Thursday next to his neighbor of almost 40 years, Clyde "Bud" Johnson. The two watched cars race through the 25-mph zone in front of them.

"Oh, look at this one," said Johnson, spotting a GMC truck."That's about a 45."

"I think the average is about 35 or better," said Baxter, noting traffic is especially bad during commuting hours. "I saw a motorcycle come through here the other evening -- he must have been doing 70. I guess he came off of the highway at Nye Lane. Some kid on a real nice Ninja."

"There's very few 25ers," replied Johnson, with his United We Stand T-shirt tucked into shorts.

A silver mini van whipped past.

"There's a 40," he said.

The men say traffic increased when commercial buildings on the north end of Mountain were built in the last couple years.

"Since they put those up traffic has increased -- by about 500 percent," said Baxter with a chuckle.

Another long-time neighbor, Eleanor Wilson, joined them.

"I think they should put in speed bumps or dips," she said, squinting into the sun under an olive tree.

"Wow, there's a 50-55," said Johnson, sipping a can of beer.

He said he's called the sheriff's department and the mayor about the neighborhood's concerns.

"I don't think we're getting results. I've called about two or three times."

With school just starting, the sheriff's department is busy patroling school zones, but they are working on Winnie Lane and Mountain Street as well.

"Winnie's one of those streets -- it's a major thoroughfare," said Chief Deputy Steve Schuette. "We can go out and work selective patrol on it, but it's one of those streets you'd have to patrol every day."

The department had two motorcycle officers with radar guns ticketing speeders along Winnie on Wednesday and set up a trailer on Thursday that tells drivers how fast they're going.

"We will have an effect on that area," said Sheriff Ken Furlong. "We use the trailer to constantly remind people of their speed and we have our traffic guys out there on their bikes doing aggressive enforcement."

How long their effect lasts will depend on the drivers, he said.

"It's up to the people to slow their vehicles. You hate to have to reach in to somebody's pocketbook to amend their behavior, but sometimes that's exactly what you have to do."

Meanwhile, Baxter and Johnson continue to watch traffic speed by their homes.

"Here comes a good one," said Johnson. "Oh, to have a radar gun."

The woman driving the maroon Buick gave a wave as she sped past.

"Well, friendliness is great, but that doesn't do it, does it?" Johnson said.

He said he's stopped waving at people who drive so fast. He has a reason to be unsocial -- he buried his 6-year-old cat Johnny in the back yard after a speeder ran it down.

"A woman down the street lost three cats (to traffic) about the same time," he said.

Still, he and Baxter recognize increasing traffic is an unavoidable part of a growing community.

"You're not going to do anything about the traffic," Baxter said. "It's here and it's only going to get worse."