Someone’s watching you

Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Karen Donato
THE EYES HAVE YOU — Watch out for the slower speed zones within the town limits. You may find yourself attracted by a blue light special.
By Karen Donato
Staff Writer
    Just a reminder, as you are in your vehicle and on your mission or on your cell phone. The local and state police are watching you. With the latest technology they can check your speed coming and going.  Gone are the days of just sitting by the roadside with the radar guns, or following you for a certain mileage to prove you are speeding. It is as quick as a blink.
     You see, I witnessed their ability first hand as I was driving north on North Street a few evenings ago. I had just pulled out onto North Street from Washburn Street and viewed an officer at the mouth of Putnam Avenue with a vehicle stopped. I proceeded to head north, not thinking I was going too fast. It was freezing cold with my heater on full blast and I wanted to get home. There was a traffic light up ahead and I met two vehicles coming south toward me. I promptly noticed the last one did a quick U-turn behind me and turned on the blue lights, I pulled over to be polite not thinking I had done anything wrong, however he pulled over, too.
    I proceeded to reach for my license, knowing that everyone with a scanner was going to hear my name, including my mother.  As he approached my door, he asked, “Where are you going?”
    That conjured up memories from when I was 15 and I got stopped near the old Cole’s Trucking Co. where P.D.Q.  Door Company is today. The trooper asked me the same question.
     I replied, “Home.”
    “Well,” he said, “You need to slow down you were going 32 mph in a 25 mph speed zone!”
    “You’re kidding?” I said, “I didn’t think I was going that fast.”
    Did I really have time to reach 32 mph after turning out of Washburn Street and being stopped in front of McDonald’s with a traffic light coming up to stop at?
    I think he just thought I was some teenager with my sporty ’97 sports car. Little did he know it has nearly 130,000 miles on it, and I’m just a little old retired school teacher moonlighting as a reporter for the Pioneer Times.
    Fortunately for me he said they were stopping everyone for checks and to drive safely, but slow down.
    I decided this might make a good story so I visited the local police department at the end of the week to see how busy they were New Year’s Eve. Lt. Dan Pelletier welcomed me into his office. I just assumed he knew that I worked for the paper since I have been here since September, but I guess like many professions, reading the paper is not always a luxury or maybe not on the top of the list. After I made my statement about the report he wanted to know my capacity for wanting the information, so I then told him that I was a reporter with the paper. I probably should have some official badge, like the press does for national news.
Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Karen Donato
CHECK YOUR SPEED — Sometimes it seems like you are not going very fast, but you might be surprised when you look at your speedometer.
    He was happy to share that the holiday night was pretty quiet and that overall accidents have been down in the area. The department continues to do seatbelt and OUI checks, but Pelletier said they have seen less disregard for the law than previously. However, they will continue to do the checks as a precaution, but feel that people are realizing that seatbelts do save lives and drinking and driving do not mix.
    So reader, beware of the speed limits within the town and on the secondary highways. A picture paints a thousand words and sometimes leads to a fine.