jim wrote:

> At any rate nobody has offered any proof that the new speed cameras are
> anything other than an attempt to protect children.

The state itself hasn't provided any proof. For instance, it would be a
simple matter of conducting a traffic (including pedestrian traffic) and
engineering studies of the proposed new school zones in question to see
whether they're needed for safety purposes. A simple FOIA directed at
the authority in question should resolve the question. But, given that
the law has no requirement for any such study, it's doubtful that the
authority has anything like that on file.

In that case, one can only conclude that such school zones were
established without any prior objective analysis based on need and
safety concerns. Without such objective analysis, concluding that
establishing those new school zones is "anything other than an attempt
to protect the children" is suspect at best. At worst, it could lead to
drivers disregarding warranted school zone speed restrictions because of
the decision of the authority to "cry wolf" regarding the need for new
school zones. If that leads to the injury or death of a child, then the
authority is culpable.