THE KING OF CAPE
A Cape Coral woman caught fire behind a speeder near a local elementary school. She does not believe that police officers are doing enough to protect children.
Clarissa Campbell wants Cape Coral police to come to Cape Coral Elementary School and catch the riders before something terrible happens.
Many of us are concerned about speeding, careless and distracted drivers, especially when our children are walking to and from school.
“I am worried about the safety of the children. People are going to be going 40, 50, 60 mph on that road, and it’s a 20 mph zone,” Campbell said.
In early November, Campbell emailed WINK News about speeding drivers around Cape Elementary. She told us when she first noticed the danger.
“For me, as soon as my granddaughter started kindergarten and now she’s in 4th grade,” Campbell said.
Campbell lives across the street from the school with her two granddaughters. Girls go to and from school every day, which often causes stress.
“A couple of times I’ve walked them through the crosswalk and I’ve literally had to stop cars because they’re not paying attention to the security guards,” Campbell said.
A school crossing guard confirmed Campbell’s concerns. She said not a day goes by that she doesn’t spot speeders.
WINK News decided to see how many people rushed past the school. In a matter of minutes, we recorded four cars speeding through the school zone.
One is going about 35, two are at least 40, and one driver is going over 50 mph.
“It’s a dangerous situation,” Campbell said.
Campbell said she had reported her concerns to the Cape Coral Police Department in the past, but didn’t feel enough was being done.
“I called the police station several times. Not this year. I have in the past. They brought the officers out, but I only saw them issue tickets once,” Campbell said.
WINK News contacted the Cape Coral Police Records Division to obtain data on school zone speeding tickets.
From January to October 2022, only one ticket was issued during school hours.
So what does Campbell think needs to be done to protect children? “I think part of the solution is going to be more police presence and actually physically writing tickets and issuing citations and making an example of that and letting people know that this is not going to be tolerated.”
WINK News took this report straight to the Cape Coral Police Department. Public Information Officer Brandon Sancho said they plan to take action and hopefully control the problem for good.
“It is extremely dangerous. You must not exceed the speed limit anywhere in Cape Coral and follow our traffic rules,” said Sancho.
For now, Sancho said officers will increase their presence in the area.
“What we’re going to be looking for is speeding, people breaking the right of way, anything you can think of, just to show our presence and enforce traffic laws,” Sancho said.
Campbell said she hopes people will take responsibility for their actions and consider the consequences.
“It’s important to me because it’s the safety of our children. Not only my grandchildren, but all children. They are all in danger trying to cross the street,” Campbell said.
The school zone is open from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. and from 2 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. The consequences of speeding in a school zone are costly.
Speeding drivers face fines of $50 for one to nine mph over the speed limit, $200 for 10 to 14 mph over the speed limit, $300 for 15 to 19 mph over the limit, and $350 dollars for speeding by 20-29. miles over the speed limit.
The fines are getting bigger and bigger, but the most significant consequence can be a person’s life.
Cape Coral Police are urging everyone to be smart and slow down.
If there is something you want to check, you can send an email [email protected]
