Tough laws, lower speed is best fix

Published 2:48 pm Thursday, January 10, 2008

Want to make our highways safer for not much money? On U.S. 2, lower the speed limit to 45-50 mph, tops — from the Snohomish exit to Index; and 60 mph on I-5 and I-90. Require headlights on at all times. Using a cell phone except for an emergency would be a primary ticketable offense — maybe $200 — up to $1,000 and 6-month license suspension for repeaters.

Make DUIs a felony with jail time and license suspension mandatory. Repeat offenders, six months to one year in jail and license revoked. Then enforce it with special patrols. Hire as many officers as necessary. It won’t cost anywhere near the billions being mentioned, and basically, it’s the drivers who need fixing. People won’t like it at first, but then the smoking laws didn’t cause rioting in the streets.

After all, this really is a matter of life and death.

MARCIA RICHARDS