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Krasnoyarsk traffic police inspectors tried an original way of punishing violators

As you know, the fine for not fastening a seat belt is 500 rubles. And although the traffic rules are the same everywhere for everyone, yesterday the leadership of the Krasnoyarsk traffic police decided to temporarily deviate from the letter of the law and punish motorists who do not care about their own safety in a more original way. “Untied” drivers who came to the attention of inspectors in the center of Krasnoyarsk were offered a choice: either pay the five thousand rubles required by the rules, or... send ten SMS messages to their relatives and friends with a call to comply with traffic rules.

An unusual preventive action, called “Mobile fine,” was invented by Krasnoyarsk schoolchildren - winners of a social projects competition held by city authorities. As the young traffic police assistants reasonably reasoned, sending ten messages would cost much less than a fine, but the effect of the campaign would be much greater, because eleven drivers would be reminded of the importance of using seat belts at once. Adult violators, especially those who were in no hurry that day, willingly paid the “alternative fine.”

The action of Krasnoyarsk traffic cops has no analogue in Russia and abroad. But still, world practice knows cases when road inspectors showed leniency towards violators free of charge. For example, four years ago, Israeli traffic police inspectors on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, handed violators detained for minor offenses not fine tickets, but greeting cards and jars of honey. As the police leadership explained then, issuing fines is not the most important task for traffic law enforcement officers. The main thing is that the driver understands the danger that violating the rules entails.

But it should still be noted that such sudden manifestations of kindness on the part of law enforcement officers are quite rare. But the increased zeal of fighters against traffic violators often leads to funny things. For example, in June 2005, in the town of Johannesburg, California, police fined... a chicken crossing the street in the wrong place. The offense committed by the poultry was assessed at $50. Since the chicken itself, for obvious reasons, could not contribute this amount, responsibility was placed on its owner. A lengthy trial ensued to determine whether a chicken was a farm animal (which, by state law, is not allowed on the road) or a pet (which is allowed to run anywhere). Ultimately, the judge concluded that the chicken was a pet, and the bird's fine was dropped.

In 2004, a British court fined a girl £60 for turning while holding an apple. Or rather, she was first ordered to pay 30 pounds, but the offender did not agree with the policeman’s arguments and tried to challenge his decision in court. The traffic inspectorate approached this matter with all seriousness: 10 thousand pounds and a year of official time were spent collecting evidence. The efforts were not in vain, however, after the successful completion of the case, an investigation was opened against the zealous law enforcement officers themselves - regarding, to put it mildly, the irrational use of budget funds.

Mikhail MOSHKIN