RICHMOND, Va. -- If you hang around Cooks Road in South Richmond long enough, neighbors said that you are sure to spot the drivers that have caused the neighborhood a headache.
"When they leave Broad Rock going to Alaska, the speed limit is 25. They run every bit of 45 or 55 before they even get to that corner. They're moving, coming on down the road, they don't care," Calvin Redwood, a man living in the area, told the CBS 6 Problem Solvers.
Neighbors believe pictures of smashed-up mailboxes tell the story, with some encased bricks even being mangled.
"That brick home at the end of the street? They ran the stop sign and ran right into that house three years ago. This is an ongoing problem," Mickey Colby, another neighbor, said.
"The debris from the mailbox came over here, broke the front of the Lexus where all the sensors are. Broke all of that up. Dented the front end and all that has to be replaced, $2,500," Dexter Samuel, who said he's fed up with the situation, said.
"During the pandemic, they took out my telegram pole. I was without power for three weeks, running the generator. Even snatched the panel box off the side of the house when they took the pole out," Redwood said.
The neighbors reached out to the CBS 6 Problem Solvers, all eager to share their own stories.
"It's crazy. You can't back out of your driveway because they're flying. This is where we live. Property damage, loss of life for that lady's pet. That's tragic and there was an accident just last night. Tow truck pulled up and took the car away. No police response. We are tired," Mickey Colby, a concerned neighbor, said.
Neighbors say they're frustrated about having to repeatedly replace mailboxes and all the other property damage. Their biggest safety concern is a bus stop in the neighborhood. They said they don't want to see a tragedy happen before the issue is resolved.
"Some kid is going to get run over. The other day, this mailbox got hit because the driver was speeding down and there was a child near the street. He swerved this way to miss the kid and hit this mailbox," one worried neighbor said.
"We need speed bumps. Not one speed bump, but speed bumps to slow the traffic down," Samuel said.
The CBS 6 Problem Solvers reached out to Richmond Council member Mike Jones. He said his office gave neighbors information on gathering a petition and came out to meet with them to discuss the issue, saying the city has a plan to address it.
"It angers me. The fact that we have individuals that speed through this neighborhood after they've been drinking all night or they are on their way wherever. We have the right to walk our streets safely and not have to worry about how can my house get hit. How can I lose my mailbox three or four times? So it's a challenge, and you're even moving right now as this guy comes, so it's something we have to address," Jones said.
It's a resolution that this group of neighbors is hoping will come to fruition as soon as possible so they are able to breathe a little easier.
"They are frustrated. So I gave them my personal phone number and let them know that the issues they're dealing with, two blocks up on Clarkson, we are dealing with the same issue. I feel comfortable that we put together a plan to address their concerns and that's all they want," Jones said.
