Those who feel the need for speed beware ? Oxford Village Police Chief Mike Neymanowski is looking into new, high-tech ways to slow you down.
As such, the chief is recommending the use of portable radar speed signs which not only display drivers? speeds, but count vehicles and analyze their speeds so he knows where and when to deploy officers.
‘Yeah, I endorse this particular sign,? Neymanowski told the village council. The chief invited Mike Lianas, a representative from Info Trak, Inc., to come to last week’s council meeting to demonstrate the sign, which costs approximately $3,800 and comes with a one-year warranty.
In a memo, Neymanowski requested council consider allowing the police department to purchase one of these signs through either the budget or a grant. The chief described the sign as ‘cost effective? and ‘versatile,? and said it ‘will enhance traffic enforcement for our officers.
Council listened to the presentation, but took no action that night.
‘What I really like about this sign is the mobility of it,? Neymanowski said. ‘This one we can move around the whole community. We don’t have to go out and buy a half-a-dozen.?
Lianas told officials the sign comes with brackets that can be mounted on either a channel pole or round pole (even speed limit signs) and left there. This way officers can easily move the sign from pole to pole anywhere in the community.
‘There’s a lot of different areas here in town that you can place it,? Lianas said.
Besides showing drivers? speeds on a LCD display, the sign also has an on-board computer which counts vehicles and records speeds. This information can be easily downloaded into a computer back at the police station or into an officer’s laptop in the field.
This information tells police how many vehicles went down a street, what percentage of them were speeding and the times of day when the speed was occurring.
Using this ‘hard evidence,? the chief can determine when to deploy officers to the street and for how long.
‘The police department is doing their job, but sometimes resources are stressed,? Lianas explained. Information gathered by the sign can help the department use its officers more ‘efficiently.?
Because signs that display speeds typically slow drivers down automatically, Lianas said this sign can be switched to ‘stealth mode.? This is where the display is shut off, but the sign is still on, cataloging vehicles and speeds.
Although a white strobe light flashes on the sign when a driver is speeding, Lianas assured it’s not taking any photographs.
‘A lot of people believe that strobe is taking their picture,? he said.
In addition to aiding police with speed enforcement, Lianas said the sign can also be used to determine traffic trends on a particular street so officials can decide when to shut it down for road repairs or construction.
For longer periods of road work, he said the sign can be used to deter speeding on other streets used as detours or shortcuts.
‘This is a great tool,? Lianas said.
The sign comes in 12-inch, 15-inch and 18-inch models. The first two can be mounted on poles. The largest one is for trailers.
Given the average speed limit on village streets is 25 miles per hour, Lianas said, ‘The 12-inch works for this community? as far as visibility to drivers.