| Dear Letters Editor: Doubling the fines along 138 (7/27) will only make the State richer and put CHP officers and drivers at more risk as officers try to apprehend people who have passed a batch of cars before the officers catch up with them. If the per capita accident rate on 138 is in fact much higher than that of similar highways due to unsafe passing and traffic, the real solution is four lanes. If the State doesn't want to allocate some of the money it's extorted from us for construction, then it should sell the right of way to private investors so they can construct a four lane or better toll road. In the meantime, the CHP should concentrate on the real driver problem: inconsiderate drivers who allow more than five vehicles to cumulate behind them and fail to slow on the ample shoulder of most of 138 to allow the obstructed drivers safe passage. Many of those who cumulate lack the confidence to pass anywhere on a two-lane road and ignore their responsibility to pass. They often leave no space in front of them for passing motorists to use, and thereby force them to pass multiple vehicles at one time. Even before I discovered I was a libertarian and considered traffic obstruction an initiation of force, I'd pull aside to let people pass if only one car was behind me. Simple consideration can mitigate highway problems, particularly the frustration that cumulates while waiting to pass a string of vehicles and sometimes results in dangerous passing. Sincerely, Bill Holmes, Vice Chair Antelope Valley Libertarian Party P.O. Box 3202 Quartz Hill, California 93586 wtholmes@compuserve.com, 661-943-7473 voice/fax http://synergy-enterprises.com/wth.html |
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