Speeding Is Hard to End, Even With Hefty Fines

Dear Dr. Gridlock:

I work in the field of behavior change and would like to bring another perspective to the discussion regarding speeders, cameras and fines.

Individual behavior is extremely difficult to change in adults, and information alone doesn't do it. If it did, we'd have no more smokers or people driving without seat belts. Habits are very hard to break, either with positive or negative incentives.

Most of us drive on autopilot on streets that have become familiar. Too often we can arrive at the mall or the store or at work without remembering all the streets in between. We don't have to be talking on the phone, listening to the radio or even talking to passengers in the car. Our thoughts can take us away from the familiar.

Our speeds often are not outrageous and are dictated either by traffic flow or by a sense of what is right for the neighborhoods.

Montgomery County recently installed a camera on Kemp Mill Road. But day after day, as I approach it, I forget it is there, and only habit keeps me below 40 mph in a 30-mph zone.

One would think the potential for a hefty ticket would be enough to alert my brain when I get close to the camera, but it is not until I see it that I realize I am driving over the speed limit (just a few miles per hour over). It's not deliberate intention that keeps us driving faster than we should, or a misapplied sense of personal rights. It's simply habit, and a personal, probably unconscious sense of what speed is appropriate.

My recommendation to those putting up cameras: Give a grace period of at least two months. New habits take time to develop. Take the photos, mail them out, but don't fine until at least two months have passed. With the numbers of new cameras on the streets increasing, it's important to understand how human behavior functions and to give drivers time to adjust.

-- Mona Grieser, Silver Spring

I received her letter over the summer and thought it timely to show you now because we're in the midst of a new learning curve on speed cameras in Maryland.

Since a state law took effect Oct. 1, no more jurisdictions have joined Montgomery in putting up enforcement cameras near schools. But the state has launched the other part of the law: allowing mobile cameras in several highway work zones. The nearest to Washington is the Intercounty Connector work zone along Interstate 95.

To get snapped, drivers have to go at least 12 mph over the speed limit. There is a grace period of a type -- but not the length -- that Grieser suggested. This month, it's warnings only. At some point, the owners of speeding vehicles will receive $40 fines in the mail.

Many of the points Grieser made about driver behavior also are cited by traffic experts. Drivers can zone out in familiar surroundings. They might not notice something new, even something as prominent as a stop sign or a traffic signal, let alone a speed camera.

Speed limits generally are set based on the type of road. But they can be modified based on behavior as well as environment. Engineers often set a limit pegged to the speed that 85 percent of drivers are likely to travel at or below, meaning that most drivers would consider the limit safe and reasonable. That's a behavioral approach.

Highway safety officials always say they try to maintain compliance using the three E's: engineering, education and enforcement.

Montgomery does all that. It might narrow roads or install devices that create the appearance that a road is narrower, to change drivers' perception of what's a reasonable speed. That's another example of behavior modification.

The speed cameras involve a couple of E's: Getting a $40 fine for going 12 mph over the speed limit tends to be educational. Even the threat of a fine tends to focus drivers' attention on the speedometer.

Grieser had some insight on that when she wrote back to me last week: "You'll be happy to know I've finally adjusted my behavior. It took almost four months, but then I might be a hard case. People using the road also seem to have adjusted. New habits are developing and a certain fear has crept across my family, friends and acquaintances, and they call and warn each other about new cameras going up."

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