this post was submitted on 08 Oct 2024
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I feel safer with a German police officer than with an American one. This being said I can’t imagine an alternative tool. Anyone given the tools needed to stop and punish dangerous drivers would just be police by another name.
I think the organizational structure, available tools, and level of oversight can make a hugely different enforcement system. Frankly I’d like to see traffic enforcement that is way more automated. I know people hate traffic cameras but they’re usually more fair than the police and way less likely to murder you.
Here in Germany we mostly use traffic cameras to enforce speeding laws. Unless you are driving way too fast you will most likely not get pulled over by police, instead some police officers set up mobile (and well hidden) traffic cameras in problematic areas which will fine anyone going too fast.
We do still have some traffic police, but we dont have as many as in the US. They will pull you over if they think you are under the influence or because your car has illegal modifications or is broken in an unsafe way.
I cannot believe that people in the US can just modify their vehicle or let its condition deteiorate so much that it is unsafe and its completely legal.
That is not the case here in Germany and it does probably help make it safer, even if some people, who would do a safe modification, cannot do it because its too hard to get it certified.
Completely legal might be a bit of a stretch, but yes, I agree. It feels like most officers have more crazy stuff to handle in a day that they don't want to take the time out of their day for smaller violations in my town. Around here you don't get pulled over for only ten over.
I think automation is an acceptable path. But I think we still would need some organization with legal authority. We can’t just fine people later for drunk driving. They need to be stoped asap even against their will. Same goes for people grossly speeding or even elderly people who can’t drive safely even though they think they can. Given your other posts this organization can be community lead. This being said any community lead organization with such a legal mandate would just be police under another name.
I’m not sure the solution of swarming our streets with cops is really better than the current problem. It seems like it would just shift indiscriminate traffic violence towards discriminatory violence against rule breakers, POC, or whoever upsets the cops. Maybe if we had a better organization capable of doing this but my sense is the police don’t really perform this function right now anyway. At least where I live there’s little to no traffic enforcement as is.
Another big aspect I didn’t mention is designing roads that prevent people from behaving badly in the first place. A system that depends on good behavior or the very unlikely event of getting pulled over was never going to work.