Truckee California, Atlanta Georgia and Winnipeg, Canada are a few of the latest cities to deploy radar speed signs in a big way. The growing acceptance of these traffic-calming displays is particularly noteworthy given the correlating decline in the popularity of speedbumps and radar speed cameras.

radar speed signs' increasing popularity

According to Sam Katz, the mayor of Winnipeg, their recent installation of seven solar-powered radar speed signs is “anything but a cash grab,” – one of the major concerns of Winnepeg citizens opposed to speed cameras. Studies show that radar speed signs are highly effective at slowing cars without being obtrusive or financially threatening (spelled t.i.c.k.e.t). Katz made it clear that none of the new displays will take pictures or be used to issue tickets.

In California, the city of Truckee took advantage of funding provided by the federal Safe Routes to School program to buy and install six flashing crosswalk signs and radar speed signs. The displays are being permanently mounted along a busy school route and are intended to be operational in time for the 2010-11 school year.

And then last year, residents of Wildwood, Georgia, a city just North of downtown Atlanta, used the data collected by a radar speed sign to convince local police that there was a major speeding problem around their local school zones. Surprising to many who analyzed follow up data, that the majority of speeders were local residents. This, however, coincides with findings of numerous traffic-calming studies and highlights one of the key reasons radar speed signs work so well. Most speeders are just distracted drivers. Radar speed signs are an unobtrusive way to redirect driver attention to their current driving conditions. And that doesn’t require photos or ticketing.