This and That
There really are ways to save tax dollars
By THOMAS MICHALSKI
| Article published on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009 |
|
 |
There are many, many ways governments can save tax dollars without affecting public safety and other high profile programs.
Cities, counties, the state of Florida and, of course, our federal government, annually wastes millions of dollars on projects we can do without.
Beautification programs are one of them.
Locally, tax dollars pay for palm trees, shrubbery and other vegetation that are planted in medians and along roads and overpasses. Many die from the lack of watering, proper care, and the carbon monoxide poisoning spewed by vehicular traffic. Mother Nature since the beginning of time has done a good job at creating beautiful landscapes. And she doesn’t charge a dime.
Another way the government can save money is to end frivolous projects. Pinellas County, for example, has spent millions of dollars on the Fred E. Marquis Pinellas Trail. Since the completion of the first segment in 1990, the trail now stretches from St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs.
Paid for with Penny for Pinellas funds, the trail consists of paved roads and an assortment of structures over busy roads and highways. Some of those overpasses, however, look like mini skyways. The one between St. Petersburg and Seminole that crosses Park Street near Tyrone Boulevard cost close to $1 million and is too steep for many average walkers and cyclists to overcome. So they continue to use the ground level paths. The money could have been better spent on road improvements. Besides, much of the trail was constructed on old railroad rights of way. That was great planning considering that now governments are scrambling for ways to create a light rail system.
Cities can save money by eliminating speed humps and so-called “traffic calmers.” Some municipalities like St. Petersburg actually install mini traffic islands in the middle of streets, complete with shrubbery and palm trees for people to crash into. A simple stop sign on each corner in residential areas could do wonders to slow down the motoring public.
The cost of the humps and calmers range from a low of $1,200 each to a high of $20,000 and more for planning, engineering, construction and signage. St. Petersburg alone has erected enough of them to pay off the national debt and start two or three new wars.
Another waste of money are those electric signs on interstates and other roads that tell drivers the time and distance between locations. I wonder how many hundreds of thousands, or maybe even millions of dollars, have been spent on those useless signs. Who cares that it takes 13 minutes to get across the Howard Frankland Bridge?
If the government has money to burn it can start with Pinellas County’s traffic signal system. We could save big bucks in fuel costs and eliminate a lot of air pollution from idling engines simply by redesigning the present system that makes frustrated drivers see, well, red, over the number of times they must stop for red lights.
Proper traffic light synchronization could allow certain lights to turn green based on a set of timers set to traffic patterns in a given area. Intersection timers could be optimized to move vehicles through several signals in the primary direction during peak hours.
Now there is something to think about.
Until next time ...
|
Article published on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009
Copyright © Tampa Bay Newspapers: All rights reserved. |
