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Holidays, parking lots can make for robberies

December 10, 2007 12:35 am

IREALIZED I'd been living in the suburbs too long when I left my purse sitting on the front seat of my car in a Fredericksburg parking lot.

Smart, right? My car doors were locked, but the thief easily smashed my window to reach it. I was lucky. I got to my bank and credit card company before the thief went shopping, and the biggest loss was paying the insurance deductible to fix my window.

Still, when a stranger has your name and address and personal information, thoughts of identity theft haunt you for months.

Parking lots at the holidays are prime targets for this kind of theft, even in our area.

So keep valuables in your trunk, advises AAA Mid-Atlantic. Park in a well-lit place where people are constantly walking past. Try to survey your car as you approach it. Is someone suspicious lurking around? Have your keys out, and survey your car--are the windows intact? Are the tires deflated? Are there obstructions near your wheel? Try to park so you approach your driver's side door, AAA recommends. That way, someone won't surprise you as you open your door. And always check your back seat before you get in the vehicle.

Dear Kelly: I've noticed there is a new traffic sign on State Route 218 toward Smith Body Shop (40 mph, watch for turning vehicles). Then, further up the road, before the State Route 603/Caisson Road/Newton Road intersection, there's a traffic sign saying the limit is 45 mph at the intersection. Which one is correct? I think 40 mph because a lot of deaths have occurred there.

--Mary Mickens, Stafford

The speed limit is 55 mph, according to Tina Bundy, Virginia Department of Transportation spokeswoman. The two signs you mention are advisory signs. These are posted to "heighten awareness to conditions or activity that may not be readily apparent," stated an e-mail from Bundy. On this road, the signs recommend driving slower than the speed limit.

Dear Kelly: Why does VDOT put up "end 35 mph" signs instead of just posting the actual speed limit? They do this in many locations, but I notice it most on Morris Road in Spotsylvania between Thornburg and Snell. I know from a past Getting There column that the speed limit in the area is 55 mph, but I frequently see people pass the "end 35 mph" sign and speed up to hold another speed, usually 40 mph. If VDOT is going to put up a sign, why don't they just put up "55 mph" signs?

--Jim Lehnert, Spotsylvania

Thanks for reading! Yes, the speed limit is 55 mph on Morris Road, except for the intersections with U.S. 1 and State Route 208, where the speed limit is 35 mph.

Drivers must slow down as they approach these intersections. The "end" signs let drivers know when they can revert to 55 mph.

As for why VDOT posts "end" signs instead of 55 mph signs, the "end" signs are generally used on rural secondary roads without speed-limit signs, VDOT's Bundy said in an e-mail.

The "end" sign lets you know one limit is transitioning to another limit.

Of course, this assumes drivers know the speed limit. Your point seems to be that drivers don't know the road's speed limit is 55 mph.

The speed limit on all secondary roads in Virginia is 55 mph unless marked otherwise, such as the "35 mph" zones at the intersection of Morris and U.S. 1 and State Route 208.