To the Editor:

In light of the recent tragic automobile accident in Santa Monica involving an 86-year-old driver in which ten pedestrians were killed and dozens injured, there are several things which can be done. Besides have tougher regulations for senior citizen drivers, cities and towns could cheaply and easily install temporary steel posts or I-beams across closed off streets that would protect pedestrians from automobiles. These solid posts could be inserted in permanent deep slots by city workers before the public street event and removed after it was over.

On TV we are continually treated to ads automobile manufacturers's ads featuring speeding cars careening around curves and going flat out on the straightaways. I would suggest that it is time to eliminate this endless corporate brainwashing of our youth and instead have automobile ads showing drivers slowing down and coming to a complete stop at intersections and smilingly waving pedestrians to cross the street. The federal government could mandate this change in television advertising. Also, we need to have mandatory drivers education classes for all high school students. Of course, most of these improvements will cost some money, but you get what you pay for. I believe that these small investments would pay large dividends in terms of safety and civility.

Yours truly,

James K. Sayre

18 July 2003