I must admit that prior to July 4, 2017, I have frequently exceeded speed limits in Santa Clarita. No more!
One of our town’s innocents, Collin Gore, was killed in this tragic holiday crash. This might be, in part, attributable to the speed limit on McBean Parkway being 50 mph.
Granted, the non-innocent party in this terrible accident clearly did not observe speed limits. I posit that most residents of Santa Clarita consider speed limits to be suggestions rather than mandates, thinking, “ 50 is the speed limit, so I can probably get away with 60.”
Yes, most of us do “get away with it” – that is, until we don’t.
What most people do not appreciate is that the destructive force of their vehicle increases by the square of its speed. The deadly force carried by a vehicle at 60 mph is 2.25 times that of one going 40.
The other common under-appreciated concept is that of relative velocity, a factor so salient in today’s most heart-rending occurrence. If vehicle A is going north on McBean at 50 mph and vehicle B is going south at 50, the resultant collision would be the same as a collision at 100 mph.
Very few vehicles, if any, will allow survival with this much deceleration.
Do we really need speed limits of 45 or 50 mph in our city? Does not the increased speed waste more gas and cause more air pollution ?
Is not the price of one young life too dear an amount to pay just so the rest of us can cram more stuff into our days? Collin’s days ended at age 18.
Please call 255-4395 today and urge our City Council members to help prevent the deaths of more of our children by decreasing posted speed limits.
Michael Pin, M.D.
Santa Clarita
