School Zone Santa .Com

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The flashing lights that are installed at schools now on a trial basis [the ones I’ve seen] have solar power.

It is very expensive to install solar power units and with the ongoing cost of replacing storage batteries and collector panels together with the risk of weather damage, vandalism and theft and they are only used three hours a day, five days a week nine months of the year.

To use solar power for this application, doesn’t seem to be a sensible cost effective option, compared to normally powered lights. [I’m sure the RTA would get a good rate for electricity].

Sutherland Shire Council put up fancy solar powered street lights each with a large solar panel when they renovated the Sylvania Heights shopping strip a number of years ago. There's only one left now. I wonder why? Were they cost effective? As far as I know the globe in the street light outside our house hasn’t been changed in 23 years

It appears that to justify their salaries, designers and planners make things complicated and expensive

Some luxury cars nowadays are so complicated with all the computers etc on board, that as a bonus selling point they have free 24 hour roadside assistance, in case of a breakdown. For $90,000 I would rather have a reliable car.

State Rail needed new rolling stock .That means something for people to sit in, that has wheels to keep it on the tracks, a motor, a driver, a heater for winter, and air conditioning for summer. We got the millennium train that has so technology on board, that it draws so much power that it blows trackside fuses. How much taxpayers money has been wasted on them?

The Navy’s Colins’ class submarine is another example. I read in The Daily Telegraph (20 November 2004), the Federal Government is throwing another $455Million at the submarines to try and get them to work. How much has this whole debacle cost? Wasn’t there a guarantee?

UPDATE 20/11/05
Defence Minister Mr Hill last week announced an $860 million upgrade of the to make the fleet "the most capable diesel electric submarines in the world"

A $1.4 billion upgrade on four second hand warships the navy bought off the US.( Did they see us coming?) is two years late and $500 million over budget (so far)
I wonder if anyone has been counseled for getting it so wrong?

When we have a change of government state or federal, we get reports in the papers of incoming ministers having their office refurbished and the money that is reportedly spent is appalling. You could build an average house with the money used to tart up a couple of rooms

So RTA forget the fancy trendy “green” solar power, put flashing lights on the signs, run a wire to the school and plug it into a timer! Most school zones, funnily enough, are near schools and I would imagine most schools have electricity.

How’s this for an idea, stretch a cable across the road at either end of the school zone above the traffic with foot ball sized strobe light suspended above the middleof the road. An easy to see “eyes up display” If it’s flashing it’s school zone time, slow down from the normal speed to less than 40 if necessary and if the light isn't flashing the normal speed limit applies.
Maybe that’s too simple?

Any other ideas?