71st Street residents push plan to slow cars

Because it links areas north to the Tyrone area, speeding is common. A girl's death two weeks ago highlighted the problem.

By JON WILSON

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 9, 2000

ST. PETERSBURG -- Cars and trucks move quickly on 71st Street N, too quickly for many of those who live on the residential road.

"It's a problem that won't go away," said Steve Plice, president of the Jungle Terrace Neighborhood Association.

"It's been a continuing problem ever since the Belcher Road access at Park Boulevard was opened" in the mid-1990s, Plice said.

Concern intensified two weeks ago when a teenage girl was struck and killed by a car at 71st Street and 50th Avenue N, which is outside St. Petersburg city limits.

But traffic is heavy inside the city. Although 71st Street is residential, it offers a link to the Tyrone Square Mall area. The official city count shows more than 5,000 cars daily use two-lane 71st Street, which narrows from faster-moving four lanes north of 54th Avenue.

Sometimes southbound motorists don't slow down because they don't notice signs posting the lower limits, or because they simply ignore the signs, police say.

The 71st Street speed limit is 25 mph in the city.

Community police Officer Rich Hladik wrote about 20 tickets one day late last month while using radar. Most were in the 35 mph range; a couple went to 44 mph speeders.

"I could come here and write 10 tickets in a couple of hours," Hladik said. He said it depends on the leeway he gives lead-foot drivers; he said he'll usually allow a little margin over the posted limit. But someone going 31 mph in a 25 mph zone is a good candidate to be pulled over.

Last week, Neighborhood Times joined Hladik for an hour of spotting speeders. Hladik clocked vehicles with a hand-held laser while standing outside his marked car. A reporter and photographer stood nearby. A resident stopped to chat a while.

The modest street-corner presence appeared to slow motorists. In addition, 71st Street has been getting heavy attention lately. And Plice and police Chief Goliath Davis have exchanged letters about traffic enforcement.

Typically, police attention slows traffic in any neighborhood.

"Then police go away, and the speeders will be back," Plice said.

Jungle Terrace residents have long wanted a calmer, quieter 71st Street. Some have pushed for speed humps to be installed along sections of it. A vote on humps and other neighborhood traffic control devices will be held April 17 during a 7 p.m. neighborhood meeting at the Science Center, 7701 22nd Avenue N.

Plice wonders what might happen if the 71st Street measure does not win approval.

"I think after that, the next step is to ask City Council to close the street," he said. "That's really a last choice after trying to keep it open."

Meanwhile, in an effort to respond to residents' concerns, the City Council is contemplating a citywide 25 mph limit on streets other than main traffic collectors and arteries. A proposed ordinance is being drafted.

Hladik uses both the hand-held laser and a radar unit mounted on his car front. That one looks a little like a spotlight. Hladik prefers the laser, which he says is much more accurate and can better pinpoint the vehicle whose speed is being measured.

Looking through a viewfinder, the user aims a red dot at a headlight or license tag. In a few seconds a tone signals a lock-on, and the vehicle's speed and distance appears on a tiny screen.

Hladik said he sometimes uses the laser while standing outside his car, especially if he is working with another officer in a "chase car" nearby. The closer the laser is to the roadway, the better, Hladik said.

As a community police officer, Hladik covers a diverse residential-commercial-retail area between 22nd and 38th avenues N, between 64th Street and Boca Ciega Bay. He tries to spend one day a week monitoring traffic on 71st Street, and recently spent two or three days in a row doing so. But there are many other demands on his time.

"I could stay here eight hours a day and do radar, but I don't think it takes care of the whole neighborhood and their concerns," said the 12-year police department veteran.

A typical traffic stop might take 15 or 20 minutes, Hladik said, including the stop itself, collecting documents from the motorist, writing the citation and taking notes in case the episode goes to court.

It can be an expensive few minutes for a ticketed motorist. Tickets cost $45 if the citation is for driving 9 mph or less over the limit, Hladik said.

The scale increases sharply: $120 for 10-14 miles over the limit; $145 for 15-19; $170 for 20-29; and $270 for 30 or higher.

Hladik said the highest he has written fell in the $145 range.

And the most interesting excuse he's heard?

"Somebody said they had to use the bathroom.

"I feel for 'em," Hladik said. "Everybody's been there one time or another. But speeding is speeding."

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