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Hero Mom Fined By Police for Vigilante Traffic Calming

She wanted her kids to be safe in the front yard, so she held the sign over her head and stood in the middle the street. Police slapped her with a jaywalking ticket.
Kristi Flanagan just wanted to stop the speeding on her street. Image via Fox San Antonio
Kristi Flanagan just wanted to stop the speeding on her street. Image via Fox San Antonio

Frustrated with speeding drivers on her street, San Antonio mom Kristi Flanagan posted a homemade sign that said “Drive like your kids live here.” But motorists ignored it.

So Flanagan stood outside and pointed at the sign. When that failed, she held the sign over her head and stood in the middle the street.

Her reward for this act of everyday heroism? San Antonio police slapped her with a “jaywalking” ticket, reports Fox San Antonio. You know, for safety. (Hat tip to Systemic Failure for highlighting this story.)

Vigilante traffic calming in action. For her efforts, Flanagan got a jaywalking ticket. Photo: Nextdoor via News4SA
Vigilante traffic calming in action. For her efforts, Flanagan got a jaywalking ticket. Photo: Nextdoor via News4SA

Flanagan is not backing down. She told the local news that she’s “received nothing but support from the community.” She said she wants through traffic off her street. Her City Council representative is looking into whether that’s a possibility.

What we’re also reading today: Transport Providence compares Rhode Island lawmakers’ caution about raising fees on drivers to their relative indifference to rising transit fares. And Spacing weighs in on Toronto Mayor John Tory’s plan to spend revenue from new tolls on two urban highways.

Photo of Angie Schmitt
Angie is a Cleveland-based writer with a background in planning and newspaper reporting. She has been writing about cities for Streetsblog for six years.

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