Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Speech of Senator DeWine-FLOOR STATEMENT: SAFE INTERSECTIONS ACT OF 2003

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2003 19:53:49 -0500

Speech of Senator DeWine
       FLOOR STATEMENT: SAFE INTERSECTIONS ACT OF 2003
 Contact: Amanda Flaig
Wednesday, November 5, 2003

Mr. President, I rise today, to introduce the Safe Intersections Act of 2003.
This bill would criminalize the unauthorized sale and possession of a mobile
infrared transmitter (MIRT).

A MIRT is a remote control for changing traffic signals. These devices have been
used for years by ambulances, police cars,
and fire trucks, allowing them to reach emergencies faster. As an ambulance
approaches an intersection where the light is red,
the driver engages the transmitter. That transmitter then sends a signal to a
receiver on the traffic light, which changes to green
within a few seconds. This is a very useful tool when properly used in emergency
situations.

In a 2002 survey, the U.S. Department of Transportation found that in the top 78
metropolitan areas, there are 24,683 traffic
lights equipped with the sensors. In my home state of Ohio, there is a joint
pilot project underway by the Washington Township
Fire Department and the Dublin Police Department to install these devices. Other
areas in Ohio where they are in use include
Mentor, Twinsburg, Willoughby, and Westerville. Across the country, law
enforcement officers, fire departments, and paramedics utilize this technology
to make communities safer.

However, recently it has come to light that this technology may be sold to
unauthorized individuals -- individuals who want to use this technology to
bypass red lights during their commute or during their everyday driving. MIRT
was never intended for this use.

MIRT technology -- in the hands of unauthorized users -- could result in traffic
problems, like gridlock, or even worse, accidents in which people are injured or
killed.

Let me quote from an ad that was recently posted on the Internet auction site,
"eBay":

"Tired of sitting at endless red lights? Frustrated by lights that turn from
green to red too quickly, trapping you in traffic? The
MIRT light changer used by police and other emergency vehicles CHANGE THE
TRAFFIC SIGNAL RED TO GREEN [for] only $499.00. Traffic Signal Changing Devices
-- It's every motorist's fantasy to be able to make a red traffic light turn
green without so much as easing off the accelerator. The very technology that
has for years allowed fire trucks, ambulances and police cars to emergencies
faster -- a remote control that changes traffic signals -- is now much cheaper
and potentially accessible."  Mr. President, this ad demonstrates the extent to
which the potential widespread sale and possession of MIRT technology by drivers
would be a hazard to public safety and must be stopped before it starts. That is
why I am introducing the Safe Intersections Act of 2003. I encourage my
colleagues to co-sponsor this important piece of legislation.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the legislation I have just
introduced be printed in the appropriate place in the Record immediately
following the conclusion of my remarks.

http://dewine.senate.gov/pressapp/record.cfm?id=214657

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