Conversational Wichitalk

I suppose I should say something about the recent effort by the Wichita Police Department to enforce some of the more routine and mundane traffic laws. There is quite a bit of comment in the public comment area of the local newspaper about it, both pro and con. It is the topic of conversation in some circles at times.
Police are observing high accident intersections and streets and are writing tickets for things such as improper turns, running through a light that is turning red, speeding, etc. Drivers many times don’t even realize they’ve done something wrong until they are pulled over and ticketed.
Of course, many think the police are ticketing people in order to generate funding for the city. Others think the police have better things to do than to worry about whether one turns into the correct lane when making a left or right turn. And some believe the police are doing exactly the right thing.
I understand that it is difficult in this age to observe every single traffic regulation and law to perfection. Sometimes the streets are constructed such that it is very unwieldy or just downright impossible to change lanes the way the law says in order to get to where one is going. However, some people just don’t have a clue.
The law has always been to make a right turn from the right hand lane into the right hand lane unless traffic signs allow something different. And left turns are to be made into the lane closest to the center line unless traffic signs allow something different. If one needs to be in another lane down the road, he is to signal and change lanes one at a time, always checking each time before changing lanes to see if traffic will allow it.
I am no fan of the Wichita Police Department. They will not generally work the smaller crimes and infractions, instead using their time to investigate and prosecute the larger crimes. I happen to think that those who are victims of the more minor crimes deserve protection and satisfaction the same as someone who is the victim of a robbery or other major crime. I also think that there is a trickle-down effect in prosecuting the smaller infractions in that if those laws are enforced, it will have the beneficial effect of lowering crimes of all kinds. If, however, the smaller infractions are allowed to slide, society pays for it in more crime and more major crime as well as paying for the effects of the minor crimes that are never solved and prosecuted.
I realize that I may be tagged for a traffic infraction in one of the enforcement efforts some day. If so, that’s OK. It’s up to me to be vigilant and watch what I’m doing when driving down the road. The stakes are very high for one who doesn’t pay attention.