DIY Life

Whaddya know? A guy attempts a little DIY traffic calming on his own street and gets attention from the cops. No, it's not because he was pointing a radar gun at passing cars, but because of the pink tricycle he planted on the side of the road. Hmm.

If you have a problem with speeding cars on your street, I'll concede it's not really practical to stand out there all day with a radar gun anyway. So here are some suggestions that might really work to solve your traffic issues once and for all.

1. Invest in a brightly colored "kids at play" driveway sign. I'm willing to bet these signs are more effective than the presence of actual children. Why? It's because the signs are designed to be all official-looking. Responsible drivers react automatically when they see a "go slow" reminder.

2. Give drivers a smile and a friendly wave. Really. It's an effective way to remind them: hey, this is a neighborhood, not a highway.

3. Call your city and get to know whoever is in charge of traffic calming. Ask him or her to come out for a visit. Be calm but persuasive in laying out your case for a traffic slowing strategy. Ask about the options, which might include speed bumps and signs.

4. Request a traffic survey from your city. Your requests for change will almost certainly come to nada unless you have numbers to back you up. So get talking and emailing: ask the city to send out traffic monitoring equipment. Keep up contact and understand it'll probably take many months before any action is taken.

5. Ask the police to watch your street and issue speeding tickets. Be persistent yet polite. If they can't spare any cars, ask if they'll send an electronic speed sign trailer from time to time.

6. Here's an interesting strategy to try: park on the street. Apparently it'll make drivers go slow. Would your neighbors be prepared to do the same? Ask them.

7. Check out this helpful speeding advice page from Walking Info.

8. Remember: persistence is key. My neighbors got speed bumps installed on our street, but it took phone call after phone call, letter after letter. If you are committed to a long-term campaign, chances are you will get results.