The radar speed sign sits outside of McConkey Park as a warning to drivers to slow down to thirty kilometers per hour while passing through the playground zone.
After an investigation that took place by the radar speed sign near McConkey park yielded surprising results, one answer is clear: when it comes to speed, drivers are bending the rules.
Wednesday, July 9, between the hours of 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., an inSide Drumheller stakeout was placed near McConkey Park. With the car parked and a watchful eye on the radar speed sign, an alarming amount of the eighty-one drivers drove through the playground’s thirty zone with no regards for the posted speed limit.
Fifty-nine per cent of drivers passed through the 30 km/h zone speeding, and of those speeders, fifty-seven per cent were going up to 10 km/h over the speed limit.
Below is a breakdown of the 81 vehicles inSide Drumheller observed passing the radar speed sign located at McConkey Park, heading west on Wednesday, July 9 between the hours of 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. The playground zone, and speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour is clearly posted.
33 drivers were going at/ or under the posted limit
19 drivers were going between 1 and 5 km/hr over the posted limit
12 drivers were going between 6 and 10 km/hr over the posted limit
17 drivers were going 11 + km/hr over the posted limit
59% of observed drivers were going above the posted speed limit.
Constable Eric Doucette is a traffic control officer with the Drumheller RCMP and urges drivers to educate themselves on the rules associated with playgrounds.
“We’ve had the sign up for about three weeks now,” Doucette says. “Playground zones are in effect from 8:30 a.m. until a half hour after dusk. When we write a ticket, and you’re doing 50 in a 30 zone with children in the park, there’s going to be no breaks.”
Speeding tickets for a playground zone will vary. Fines are determined by how fast a vehicle is travelling. License demerit deductions will vary from 3-6 demerits taken off.
