It is difficult to imagine that Rep. Anthony Giarrusso, R-East Greenwich, is in favor of cars speeding through school zones. But his latest legislative introduction certainly makes it seem that way.
Mr. Giarrusso is among a number of people outraged by the recent activation of automatic speed cameras in a number of school zones in Providence. The first five cameras to be made active issued 12,193 tickets between Jan. 16 and Feb. 22, according to the Providence Journal.
If all the tickets were to be paid, the city would get a $1.2 million infusion to its coffers, but a mass of ticket recipients had their tickets thrown out for a variety of technical glitches.
While one could view the cameras as a way for the city to pad its bank account, it might be reflective of better community values to view them as a new tool to increase public safety, specifically the safety of our children.
There should be no tolerance for speeding in school zones. Is there any argument to that?
And any tool that supports that end result should be allowed to do its job.