Whenever someone speeds down my street, my heart races and suddenly the loss of my niece Bethany is right there.
Bethany was killed by a speeding driver going 80MPH back in 2019 in South Los Angeles. My grandniece doesn't have a mom because of dangerous speeding.
And this is happening all the time. Lives cut short by people going way past the speed limit. In California alone, more than 1,000 people are killed by speeding drivers each year and tens of thousands severely injured.
It doesn't have to be like this. Right now, there's a bill on California Governor Gavin Newsom's desk that would require a commonsense safety feature in new cars and trucks that would help reduce dangerous speeding. The bill, SB 961, would require all cars and trucks manufactured or sold in California (except emergency vehicles and motorcycles) to give an audio and visual alert to drivers when they're going more than 10 MPH above the speed limit, starting in 2030.
And if Governor Newsom signed this bill (SB 961) into law, it would likely spark other states – and likely the federal government – to require this lifesaving technology. It's just like when states were the first to require the auto industry to put seat belts in cars.
SB 961 is being supported by groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, AAA, and the National Safety Council. It's recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
But the auto industry is against SB 961, which is why it's so important that Governor Newsom sees that people want this life saving technology in cars – and he can make it happen by signing this bill.
The auto industry keeps making bigger, heavier vehicles that can accelerate scary-fast – and are so quiet and smooth that many drivers don't even realize how fast they're going. We need technology to help counteract this. Europe now requires speed alert technology in all vehicles, and has proven it works.
For every mile a driver goes over the speed limit, the risk to you and me rises dramatically and the more likely a crash is to occur. A driver has a smaller scope of vision, less time to react, and can't stop the vehicle as quickly. And the human body can't withstand the additional force as speeds rise.
Whether you are in California – or elsewhere – please, join me in urging Governor Newsom to #SignSB961 into law. I don't want anyone to lose a beloved friend or family member. My family, and especially Bethany's daughter, feels the huge hole her death left every day.
P.S. You can contact Families for Safe Streets or Street Racing Kills if you have been impacted by traffic violence. You are not alone in this immeasurable grief.
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