Is Crackdown Fair?

Far be it for us to suggest how local authorities should enforce the law. But we've had a chance to observe some patterns and activities in Columbia County, intentional or unintentional, which raise questions about fairness.

Let's begin with Ski Bluewood.

Along Fourth Street in Dayton and the North Touchet Road in the county, an unusually large number of patrols were seen pulling over motorists for speeding violations. According to reports, two sheriff's office deputies were along the route in the mountains and two patrols from the U.S. Forest Service were active within national park boundaries.

Based on incident reports from the sheriff's office, its deputies were at these locations only on the weekend, when skiers make their way through the county toward Ski Bluewood. According to these reports, three different deputies pulled over motorists on the route on Sunday albeit at different times.

This would give the appearance that skiers are being targeted.

Sheriff Walt Hessler says this is not his office's policy and he will look into it. We are glad to hear that because we feel there are speeders to go after throughout the county - not just on the ski route.

Hessler explains that there are usually more infraction patrols on the weekend because deputies are often busy during the week with court appearances and other weekday business activities that are a part of their job.

But Hessler also thought the number of patrols reported along Fourth and the North Touchet seemed excessive. Particularly if the Forest Service is patrolling its portion of the route to Bluewood, there should really only be a need for one sheriff's deputy on the county road.

He has been at home with an injury since Friday, but will investigate when he returns to the office, he said. Comment from the U.S. Forest Service could not be obtained in time for this edition.

Naturally, motorists who break the law risk being cited and when residents along the North Touchet Road complain about too much speeding, the sheriff's office is well within its right to emphasize the route with patrols.

But Hessler said that hasn't happened so far this ski season.

We feel it's important to be evenhanded when it comes to ticketing drivers - in the interest of fairness and of Bluewood's new owners, who are trying to make the resort a success.

Next, we'd like to discuss the sheriff's crosswalk "emphasis."

Last week, Hessler's office announced it will start handing out $124 tickets to motorists who don't yield to pedestrians using crosswalks around Dayton. His office has received a number of complaints about drivers simply ignoring walkers' rights-of-way, merrily leaving them in the dust after they step into the road.

Sure enough, at least six drivers were cited or warned about the violation since Hessler's announcement went out.

But wait a minute. What crosswalks?

Of course, we're being facetious, but the point is that at many intersections on Main Street, the white crosswalk stripes are all but invisible except for several bands closest to the curb.

The season is the problem. Every winter, snow ploughs rip up the paint until there's little more than the bare road surface left. It's no use repainting them when temperatures are so low the paint won't stick and new snow may bring the ploughs out again, so the city waits until the spring to redo them.

However, there are other ways of making the crosswalks more visible. To start, Hessler says the city plans to install flashing lights just east of Fourth Street and by Dayton Mercantile to remind motorists to yield to pedestrians on the crosswalks.

But the city's public safety committee should explore additional visual aids for drivers, such as recessed reflectors or warning lights above crosswalks at major intersections. This would help cut down the possible excuses drivers come up with for failing to yield and save the sheriff precious human resources to control the problem.