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Time running out for radar bill

Legislation would give police better technology to nab speeding motorists

Mirror photo by J.D. Cavrich / Logan Township Police Patrolman Tyler McConnell and Patrolman First Class Chris Bender use a VASCAR speed enforcement system along East Pleasant Valley Boulevard in Greenwood on Friday. Local police say a bill to allow municipal police to use radar that overwhelmingly passed the Senate last week would make their communities safer.

Local police say a bill to allow municipal police to use radar that overwhelmingly passed the Senate last week would make their communities safer, but time is running out to get the measure passed.

Senate Bill 535 passed, 47-3, on Oct. 18, but with only three days left in the state House session, it will be a tight timeline to get the bill to the floor for a vote.

“I’m very much in favor of municipal departments being able to utilize radar,” said Logan Township Police Chief Tim Mercer, who used radar as a state trooper for 27 years.

Right now, only state police can use radar in Pennsylvania, and municipal police must use speed enforcement systems such as VASCAR, which stands for Visual Average Speed Computer And Recorder, and ENRADD, which stands for Electronic Non Radar Device, and other systems that use timed distance to check for speeders. It requires white lines to be painted on the roads and not only is that an added expense, it’s not always feasible in certain areas where sight-distance is limited, Mercer said.

Hand-held radar, on the other hand, is accurate and relatively inexpensive and allows officers to move in and set up speed enforcement rather quickly, as opposed to current methods.

Mirror photo by J.D. Cavrich / Right now, only state police can use radar in Pennsylvania. Municipal police must use speed enforcement systems such as VASCAR (pictured above), which stands for Visual Average Speed Computer And Recorder.

“It’s a very effective and accurate means to monitor the speed of the motoring public,”

Mercer said.

Mercer said the goal in the township this past summer was to reduce the number of serious crashes, which he said radar would help accomplish.

Mercer also tested various kinds of radar, including laser speed detectors that are still not approved for use in the commonwealth, during his tenure with the state police. He said laser systems are great for more urban areas with high traffic volume since officers can pinpoint a vehicle in a pack and accurately know its speed, something radar cannot do.

Mercer said he would like to see Pennsylvania police have use of that technology as well as mobile radar, where officers can determine a vehicle’s speed while the patrol vehicle is on the move,  at some point down the road, too.

Rep. John McGinnis, R-Altoona, said last week that he would support the radar bill if it comes up for a vote by the end of the House’s session. The House has three session days this week — today, Tuesday and Wednesday. The bill would have to come out of committee on Monday and come up for consideration three times before a vote. That leaves an exceedingly tight timeline, McGinnis said, and if there are any amendments to the bill, it would have to go back to the Senate and would die. If it doesn’t come up for a vote in the House by Wednesday, the bill will die with the end of the current legislative session on Nov. 30.

“I would vote yes,” McGinnis said, noting that the largest criticism of allowing local police to use radar is that departments would use it as a revenue generator seems weak.

“Just don’t speed,” McGinnis said. “Don’t speed, and they can’t catch you.”

McGinnis said it would be good for safety on Pennsylvania streets and would be a good tool for local officers.

Pennsylvania is the only state that doesn’t permit municipal police to use radar, and McGinnis said it’s insulting to local officers.

“I think it’s demeaning,” he said. “As it stands, it says they’re not trustworthy to use it.”

Duncansville Police Chief Jim Ott said Blair County police chiefs have been in contact with legislators such as McGinnis and Rep. Judy Ward, R-Hollidaysburg, about the legislation.

Ott dismissed the idea that municipalities would see a big payday if they could use radar, pointing out that the actual typical fine for speeding is $25, of which the local municipality would get half.

“There won’t just be guys out there running radar all day,” Ott said. “There has to be a balance.”

Ott said radar would help address problem neighborhoods and give police a way not only to slow down drivers but also show residents who are concerned about people driving too fast through their neighborhoods whether or not there truly is a problem.

Ward said she would also vote yes if the bill came up for a vote.

“It’s primarily about safety,” Ward said. “Especially in some of the smaller municipalities, it would be a great tool.”

Allegheny Township Police Chief Leo Berg agreed that for the township’s department of eight full-time officers, radar would help enforce speed in areas where methods such as VASCAR and ENRADD aren’t practical.

“We’re not doing this to bring about revenue,” Berg said. “We’re utilizing it to slow people down.”

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