Acushnet Residents Fed Up With Reckless Drivers

When I was younger, I did a lot of silly things. I rode a bike without a helmet, jumped off bridges, and acted like I was invincible. It wasn’t until my late teens where I realized that reckless actions can have serious consequences.

Acushnet residents are fed up with fast drivers on Hamlin Street, and considering what I've learned over the years, I have a message for those fast, reckless drivers.

“PLEASE stop playing chicken on Hamlin St., especially with snow on the ground,” Karen Amarello wrote on Facebook. “It’s NOT OK to come around the curve over the bridge on my side of the road and not even slow down. It’s just not. No one’s hurry is worth a crash. Seriously.”

Seeing this message took me right down memory lane, but not a lane that brought me joy. It brought me sadness. In high school, I was notorious for being a fast driver. I was constantly getting speeding tickets and showed no signs of improving.

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Then, one year after I graduated high school, I lost a friend after he drove too fast on a winding road and hit a pole. One crash after another led to five people losing their lives in car crashes. Needless to say, I’ve slowed way down and got a little smarter behind the wheel, but I want the reckless drivers to know that you are not Superman. You are not invincible. Just slow down.

From the looks of it, that’s all that the Acushnet residents want is for people to slow down.

“We live around the bend…and have had the chain link fence taken down by cars numerous times," wrote Angela Dexter.

“My entire passenger’s side has a scrape down it from someone driving a black truck doing that to me and pushing me into the guardrail a few years ago. I avoid that road whenever possible and go the long way," wrote Christy Medeiros.

No one should have to be forced to take the “long way” just to feel safe on their way home.

Several comments pointed out that the town had suggested widening the road at one point, but no such action has taken place.

Until that happens, let’s be more mindful of the bend and be considerate of our fellow neighbors.