It was asked today why I'm doing santa again.
Look in the archives, I've never stopped.

We were promised flashing lights at school zones.

At Kogarah which generated $6.5 million in fines in 2003/2004 alone, all the RTA could afford , or thought was sufficient, were 2 flashing lights for four roads leading into the zone.
That's 2 lights for only ONE road.

I sent this into the two major papers
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Dear letter's editor,
In keeping with the promise of the latest NSW Road minister, Mr Roozendaal, there have been appearing at selected school zones "State of the Art" ( read very expensive ) back to base, solar powered, flashing light units.

But why do they have to be placed so high, behind trees , and poles, and around bends so you don't see them till the last second.

Hello, they are solar powered (no wires) so they can be placed anywhere to improve sight lines.

At the infamous school zone at Kogarah with it's two speed cameras, the RTA has kindly allocated 2, one at each end of the school zone on the Princes Highway.
Great for drivers on the highway, but what about all the drivers on the three other busy roads leading onto the same school zone ?

On Mon 29 the start of the gazetted school year (a pupil free day) two friends and I counted the number of vehicles coming out of these three roads between 8-00am - 9-30am (school zone time), all 2,798 of them.

The 1,686 drivers leaving Rocky Point Rd had nothing to alert them of the school zone, and that it could be school zone time, except a sad looking, accident damaged sign behind two utility poles and the road markings, before they blissfully drove into the deserted school zone.

Without the help of flashing lights 332 drivers came out of
South St..

President Avenue, the main road artery from Brighton -lee- sands has only road markings and a sign hidden behind foliage to help the 780 entering the zone.

During that afternoon's school zone time, I counted 2,111 drivers heading south in President Ave into the Kogarah school zone.

If the RTA/ GOV/ honestly think that only two sets of flashing lights is the way to fix the situation at the Kogarah school zone,

Heaven help the school children .
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The letter wasn't printed (today anyway), maybe it was a little too verbose.
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What is needed at Kogarh is "flashers" at President Ave, Rocky Point Rd. and a set on a school zone sign facing South St.

An Olsen set would do fine there, actually Olsen flashing lights would do the job at all school zones.

But because they only would cost around $350 (not a misprint), a set, in the RTA's way of thinking, and government thinking generally, they couldn't be any good , because they don't cost zillions.

Alan Jones once said it's easy spending someone else's money.

This is a Olsen flashing light set woking in Peakhurst.
NB. the cars's brake lights.