this largely fits with my experience in Seattle. congestion is so bad that police have flat out said they won't enforce traffic rules like "blocking the box" [0

this largely fits with my experience in Seattle. congestion is so bad that police have flat out said they won't enforce traffic rules like "blocking the box" [0]. first, compared to e.g. Austin, the fine is laughably cheap (Seattle $136, Austin ~$500). second, i'm all for police having leeway, but not in such a blanket manner. there's a reason we separate powers, and they don't get to decide the rules. finally, it isn't just blocking the box, it's also things like "no turn on red". so while bad drivers are getting away with more and more, it's gotten quite dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists. [0] https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/video-pedestrians-dodge-gridlocked-cars-while-crossing-seattles-mercer-street-at-rush-hour/ https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/vid... > Police aren’t writing $136 tickets for “blocking the box” on Mercer because doing so would penalize the other drivers with more gridlock, by clogging a traffic lane, said spokesman Sgt. Sean Whitcomb