tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post3648224061300442781..comments2023-10-17T22:56:42.784-04:00Comments on Only in The Republic of Amherst: Speed JumpLarry Kelleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02614645831526190536noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-54707716649868792832013-05-16T04:56:12.918-04:002013-05-16T04:56:12.918-04:0045 is absurd, how bout a toll booth then. The tire...45 is absurd, how bout a toll booth then. The tires are screeching at the crosswalk to Survival Ctr. Don't forget DPW 45 really means 55, or do you drive the speed limit at what it says? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-81981282482616742852013-05-15T01:00:59.038-04:002013-05-15T01:00:59.038-04:00No matter who is responsible, the fact is that the...No matter who is responsible, the fact is that the current sign tells drivers to speed up the hill going past the new Survival Center crosswalk, Cowles and The Harp. Pedestrian traffic has greatly increased because of the Survival Center and safety should be the concern. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-60208288687260186922013-05-14T20:38:10.150-04:002013-05-14T20:38:10.150-04:00Speed limits are set based on a speed study and mu...Speed limits are set based on a speed study and must be approved by three groups on local roads. The Select Board, Mass DOT and the Registry of Motor Vehicles. This prevents a community from setting the speed limit to 60 mph or 20mph.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-46218142339534613432013-05-14T18:59:39.305-04:002013-05-14T18:59:39.305-04:00I believe the Select Board has control over town r...I believe the Select Board has control over town roads and the state over state roads. Render unto Caesar and all that.<br /><br />If you remember the town took control of South Pleasant street all the way to Atkins Corner so they could do a "better design" at the Village Center where Pomeroy Lane intersects. Of course now we have to plow it in the winter. Larry Kelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02614645831526190536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-76202235365423944802013-05-14T18:42:15.395-04:002013-05-14T18:42:15.395-04:00I was told by DPW that speed limits were decided b...I was told by DPW that speed limits were decided by the state and it was a complicated process to change it. Is this true or is it the Select Board? Larry?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-37128958105167369262013-05-14T11:14:46.358-04:002013-05-14T11:14:46.358-04:00Most concerning, are there any speed limit signs i...Most concerning, are there any speed limit signs in town that are too high.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-61914437708878279052013-05-14T08:36:49.957-04:002013-05-14T08:36:49.957-04:00All my sources are reliable.All my sources are reliable.Larry Kelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02614645831526190536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-59965690388920904442013-05-14T08:31:38.969-04:002013-05-14T08:31:38.969-04:00I don't believe everything every reporter writ...I don't believe everything every reporter writes, even Larry. So I'm wondering if we can get to the bottom of exactly why the 30 mph sign was installed. Mr. Kelley, would you be willing to tell us how you know it was installed there because it was "the only one available at the time"? Reliable source?<br /><br />Does town or state money pay for those signs? Anyone?<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-74415102918311955912013-05-14T07:26:58.595-04:002013-05-14T07:26:58.595-04:00However, mr. graff, you did not mention anything a...However, mr. graff, you did not mention anything about work ethic or integrity, you commented on the intelligence of our road crews: "masters of signage", "geniuses"...<br /><br />If you want to convey one thing the first time then use our language properly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-82253127508030205622013-05-14T00:05:33.408-04:002013-05-14T00:05:33.408-04:00I'm wondering, Mr. Graff, how you know it was ...I'm wondering, Mr. Graff, how you know it was not an honest mistake. Is it because Larry told you "the only one available at the time was a 30 MPH, so they went with it." Can you verify, independently, that the 30 mph sign was placed there because "that's all they had on hand"? Or are you just going with what Larry says?<br /><br />You did not independently verify that, and, you leapt at the opportunity to call people who live and work in Amherst buffoons once again.<br /><br />You, sir, have a very negative perception of people and the world you live in, you don't play well with others, and it must be very tiring.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-6724736923306508292013-05-13T22:58:55.428-04:002013-05-13T22:58:55.428-04:00Bash? I'm referring to professionalism and int...Bash? I'm referring to professionalism and integrity. "We don't have a 45 mph sign so let's put up a 30." They would have been more correct simply not to put up a sign according to Mass law. And to put a blatantly illegal sign combining a stop sign and a warning sign in what is supposed to be a orange and black warning sign is not only idiotic, it could have cost someone their life. So call it bashing if that makes you happy. Where I come from we expect integrity. Playing Legos with peoples safety is very unprofessional. Most people I know take great pride in their work and strive for the best results. Walter Graffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-88132455565322204352013-05-13T22:44:34.331-04:002013-05-13T22:44:34.331-04:00I wonder if anyone was stopped in that area for go...I wonder if anyone was stopped in that area for going over 30 and then arrested for something else like drugs or drunkenness or expired registration.<br /><br />And Mr. Graff, is it really necessary to use this opportunity to bash the road crews? Boy, you sure do see opportunities to be nasty at every turn on this blog, it seems.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-91373173692140939832013-05-13T22:22:34.396-04:002013-05-13T22:22:34.396-04:00Also, how many other speed limit signs around town...Also, how many other speed limit signs around town post a speed limit different from what the Select Board decided?AlexKGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14136445267281522466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-6093058738288879002013-05-13T21:43:09.538-04:002013-05-13T21:43:09.538-04:00Some of you may remember on this same road a few m...Some of you may remember on this same road a few months back the geniuses of the Amherst road department put a warning that a stop sign was ahead 100 feet or so before where the road meets route 116. How did these masters of signage do that? They put a regulation red/white stop sign with a yellow AHEAD sign under it. This caused cars to jam on their brakes many times and caused others to nearly veer off the road in confusion. Eventually it was removed for a proper STOP AHEAD orange warning sign. TEh same road that is now becoming a pot hole after the 'earth saving' way it was paved by boiling the surface and relaying it proved to be a disaster. Only in Amherst. Walter Graffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-5349184416896647512013-05-13T21:36:26.215-04:002013-05-13T21:36:26.215-04:00Any speed regulation must be approved by the Highw...Any speed regulation must be approved by the Highway Department and Registry of Motor Vehicles before the limit can be posted. This is important, because in Mass. it is the regulation that matters, not the sign. <br /><br />Bottom line a sign by itself does not dictate your speed. In Mass the law is that no person operating a motor vehicle on any way shall run it at a rate of speed greater than is reasonable and proper. The law uses the following as a standard which means you can fight any speed ticket if you can prove it. <br /><br />The following are prima facie evidence of unreasonable speed in Mass:<br /><br />Exceeding 30 MPH for 1/8 mile in a "thickly settled" area (where houses average less than 200 feet apart for 1/4 mile) or business district.<br />Exceeding 40 MPH for 1/4 mile on an undivided highway outside a thickly settled area.<br />Exceeding 50 MPH for 1/4 mile on a divided highway outside a thickly settled area.<br />Exceeding 20 MPH in a school zone. <br /><br />"Prima facie" evidence means that you can be convicted of speeding if you exceed these speeds and no additional evidence is required, but you are allowed to present evidence that your speed was reasonable. In most states besides Mass speed limits are absolute; you are breaking the law by exceeding the speed limit regardless of whether you are driving safely. <br /><br />So for the years I watched Amherst Police hand out speeding tickets at what was Roosters, they could have been dismissed. Walter Graffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-81810597576723630772013-05-13T20:02:19.123-04:002013-05-13T20:02:19.123-04:00I wonder how many speeding tickets have been issue...I wonder how many speeding tickets have been issued to drivers going over 30 and under 45 since the speed limit was approved. I wonder if the law is whatever the sign says or whatever it is supposed to be.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5035949355013113578.post-78237059112937411022013-05-13T17:35:57.611-04:002013-05-13T17:35:57.611-04:00Any speed over 25 is too fast on that road. Any speed over 25 is too fast on that road. Adam Sweethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14180295809245561297noreply@blogger.com