Traffic law enforcement in your area

[ronpaulvoter]

What do you think of the traffic law enforcement in the area where you live, roughly within a 50 mile radius?

Poll is multiple choice. Vote once on on the severity on the enforcement and again on the number of tickets you have received during your lifetime.

Do you have any speed traps or other abuse?

Have you or any family or close friends ever been abused?

Huge List of Speed Traps | The National Speed Trap Exchange

 

[digsbe]

Here traffic enforcement is too severe and almost abusive. They go to speed traps and ticket people for speeding when the speed limit sign is hidden by trees and overgrowth. There is a small town where they literally make most of their revenue passing out speeding tickets on 1 road. I have personally never gotten a ticket, but here in Nashville cops are borderline abusive when it comes to ticketing and the like. Plus they lie about your speed and make up details to pass out tickets. If you take them to court you will win the case, but most cops hope that you will just pay the ticket and not waste your time in court.

 

[jamesrage]

A speed trap is not law enforcement abuse. Those signs on the side of the road with numbers under the words "speed limit" are not speed suggestion. If you obeyed traffic laws then you would not get pulled over for speeding. I have gotten my fair of speeding tickets(mostly for drag racing) and I deserved them.

 

[Aunt Spiker]

Everyone who zips down my street eventually gets a ticket.

I say that's about right. :mrgreen:

 

[Slartibartfast]

So far, I have managed to convince the local officers to give me a warning for the last few stops. So I am good. The one time I did get a ticket in this town, it was for going 20 over and he put it down as 6 over, which cost me $10. I am cool with that too.

 

[digsbe]

A speed trap is not law enforcement abuse. Those signs on the side of the road with numbers under the words "speed limit" are not speed suggestion. If you obeyed traffic laws then you would not get pulled over for speeding. I have gotten my fair of speeding tickets(mostly for drag racing) and I deserved them.

It is abuse. Especially when they lie about your speed and speed trap in areas where the speed limit sign is covered. They ticket and monitor stop signs in my neighborhood as well and write false tickets to make revenue.

 

[jamesrage]

It is abuse. Especially when they lie about your speed and speed trap in areas where the speed limit sign is covered. They ticket and monitor stop signs in my neighborhood as well and write false tickets to make revenue.

Any evidence of this or this just the claims on whiners who got caught speeding? I know in my state from basic drivers ed classes that if you do not see a speed limit sign then the speed limit is 25MPH especially if it is in a residential neighborhood. As for signs being covered surely someone would have fought those tickets in court and got the city to remove the obstructions.

 

[winston53660]

A speed trap is not law enforcement abuse. Those signs on the side of the road with numbers under the words "speed limit" are not speed suggestion. If you obeyed traffic laws then you would not get pulled over for speeding. I have gotten my fair of speeding tickets(mostly for drag racing) and I deserved them.

Sheesh I live on a six lane road where the speed limit is artificially low, 35 mph. The traffic cops love it for handing out tickets.

 

[digsbe]

Any evidence of this or this just the claims on whiners who got caught speeding? I know in my state from basic drivers ed classes that if you do not see a speed limit sign then the speed limit is 25MPH especially if it is in a residential neighborhood. As for signs being covered surely someone would have fought those tickets in court and got the city to remove the obstructions.

Yeah, they pulled my dad over for going 43 in a 35. My dad showed them the sign that was covered by a tree and brush. The cops were literally lining people up to ticket them. They told my dad that they would trim the sign eventually, but that it was no excuse for speeding. He got a ticket and paid it. I have never gotten a ticket, and it's largely because I know where the cops are and I have memorized the speed limits on streets. I understand pulling over someone who is speeding, but cops shouldn't set traps to milk revenue out of drivers. They also make fake accusations here. I was riding home from church with my family several years ago, and the cops were ticketing at our stop sign in my neighborhood. My dad was in a tan truck, and my mom (and me) were in a blue minivan. The cops pulled both of the vehicles over and gave us a tickets for "rolling stops." They were BS tickets and my mom decided to challenge hers in court (the cops were going to be "merciful" and only give a ticket to 1 of us because we were all a family). When my mom went to court the cops presented their case and said they ticketed her for running a stop sign. They had in their report that she was driving a white vehicle. My mom corrected them and said it was a blue minivan, and that she made a complete stop. The judge canceled the ticket and knew these cops were just pulling over everyone, ticketing them with a false charge, filling out a BS report, and hoping that people will just pay up and not challenge things in court. It may not be like this for every city, but the cops in Nashville, Mount Juliet, and Lakewood are ticket happy and abuse their authority as keepers of the law.

 

[Aunt Spiker]

I'm lost - why don't people just go out there and trim down the tree/bush if it's in the way of the sign? Why wait for the officials or workers to do it - obviously they're not doing it in a timely fashion. *snip snip* There - now no more unfair tickets. . . no more excuses. . . no more reasons.

I have 2 speed signs roadside "on" my property and several other street signs like "stop" "yield" (I have a lot of property) - I keep them trimmed and visible as part of my usual lawn care routine because I live out in the middle of nowhere and they only maintain the roads here a few times a year. People still speed - and they still get ticketed. Except for me, because I know what the speed limit is - it is my business to know. It's not that hard to avoid speeding . . . if you remove *your* barriers to knowing the speed limit then its much easier to deem when a cop is being unfair or on a power trip and when they're not.

 

[jamesrage]

Yeah, they pulled my dad over for going 43 in a 35.

Has this area always been a 35MPH or was it just a day or two prior to him getting a ticket they changed it to 35? Do they always change the signs?

My dad showed them the sign that was covered by a tree and brush.

Then he should have fought in court. I would think that if citizens were that concerned then they themselves would trim it or if the tree is on private property then ask the property own to trip it.

 

[digsbe]

I'm lost - why don't people just go out there and trim down the tree/bush if it's in the way of the sign? Why wait for the officials or workers to do it - obviously they're not doing it in a timely fashion. *snip snip* There - now no more unfair tickets. . . no more excuses. . . no more reasons.

I have 2 speed signs roadside "on" my property and several other street signs like "stop" "yield" (I have a lot of property) - I keep them trimmed and visible as part of my usual lawn care routine because I live out in the middle of nowhere and they only maintain the roads here a few times a year. People still speed - and they still get ticketed. Except for me, because I know what the speed limit is - it is my business to know. It's not that hard to avoid speeding . . . if you remove *your* barriers to knowing the speed limit then its much easier to deem when a cop is being unfair or on a power trip and when they're not.

They have trimmed the sign after people complained, but not until after the tickets were given out. The sign is in someone's property, and it's in a senior neighborhood. My guess is that they didn't bother to trim it on their own or thought that they can't because the sign is state property. Regardless, the sign was covered and the cops were monopolizing on the fact that people couldn't see the 5mph speed reduction.

Has this area always been a 35MPH or was it just a day or two prior to him getting a ticket they changed it to 35? Do they always change the signs?

The area has been 40 mph, but once it gets to a school it changes to 35mph for roughly 50 yards (until you reach a light). It's a very short distance and most people didn't know that the speed changes and have always gone 40 because the 35mph limited area is very small. They change the signs and speeds here sometimes, but they'll be ticketing the next day when they do.

Then he should have fought in court. I would think that if citizens were that concerned then they themselves would trim it or if the tree is on private property then ask the property own to trip it.

He should have, but he chose not to. The cops literally had an assembly line of cars waiting to be ticketed. It looked almost like some kind of a check point. No one knew about the sign until people started getting ticketed. The cops weren't obviously ticketing on a Sunday near a school because they wanted to "keep kids safe." It was purely for revenue, and they were exploiting a very small strip of road with a hidden speed limit sign in order to make some ticket revenue.

 

[Aunt Spiker]

True - they do that everywhere . . . hoping people will *not* slow down when they should. Yeah, it can get out of hand.
One ticket, though, should be enough for a person to know that "around downtown they're assholes about it" and then learn that speed, never go over it - set the cruise control if you have to.

If someone is constantly getting tickets - even by ass cops who are being a butt just to make quota - then there should be a lesson in there somewhere: it's easier to change your speed than it is to change all the cops.

 

[Psychoclown]

I got A LOT of tickets when I was younger, but I haven't had a ticket in about five years now. And that ticket broke about a two year ticket free run, but prior to that I got at least a ticket a year, and often more. But out here, its far too severe. There are several speed traps where the speed limit is artificially low. The town I grew up in was the worst - with two of the most ridiculous speed traps. The town has three main north/south roadways that run the length of the town (and beyond) and two east/west ones. One of each is set to ridiculously low levels and when these changes were first made cops will ticket you for going even a few miles over the limit. It's got so bad that most people avoided them if at all possible, meaning traffic got much worse on the other main roads. Finally there were enough complaints and the cops got a little more lenient, but they are still notorious speed traps.

We've also got a nice little speed trap on the interstate out here. For reasons unknown to just about everyone, the speed limit drops to 45 MPH for a stretch of road. Of course, you'd get run over if you actually drove that slow, but it doesn't stop cops from writing tickets. I drive home across that stretch every night at midnight and every night there are two cop cars lying in wait.

I don't have a problem with cops pulling over people who are driving recklessly or whatever, but constant patrolling of speed traps is a waste of tax dollars. It does nothing to improve the quality of life or safety of the area. In fact, due to the way it can artificially affect traffic patterns, it could be argued it has a negative affect on the quality of life. I'd prefer cops to do some real police work that would actually improve the quality of life in the area. If we don't have anything more pressing for officers to do, we should cut back the number of officers on the force.

 

[RightinNYC]

Rarely drive in the city, but I got pulled over 4 or 5 times when I was back upstate. Never once got a ticket.

 

[ReverendHellh0und]

What do you think of the traffic law enforcement in the area where you live, roughly within a 50 mile radius?

Poll is multiple choice. Vote once on on the severity on the enforcement and again on the number of tickets you have received during your lifetime.

Do you have any speed traps or other abuse?

Have you or any family or close friends ever been abused?

Huge List of Speed Traps | The National Speed Trap Exchange

It's freaking awesome in my town, idiots that try to speed down residential streets get nailed hard.

 

[jujuman13]

digsbe wrote(The area has been 40 mph, but once it gets to a school it changes to 35mph for roughly 50 yards (until you reach a light). It's a very short distance and most people didn't know that the speed changes and have always gone 40 because the 35mph limited area is very small.)

Come on, I have limited knowledge of US driving, yet even I know that you slow down in a school area even to 35 or 30MPH in some instances.
If you have no idea as to the speed range, you must at the very least realize you are in or near a school speed zone, the signs on the road surface will tell you that.

 

[digsbe]

digsbe wrote(The area has been 40 mph, but once it gets to a school it changes to 35mph for roughly 50 yards (until you reach a light). It's a very short distance and most people didn't know that the speed changes and have always gone 40 because the 35mph limited area is very small.)

Come on, I have limited knowledge of US driving, yet even I know that you slow down in a school area even to 35 or 30MPH in some instances.
If you have no idea as to the speed range, you must at the very least realize you are in or near a school speed zone, the signs on the road surface will tell you that.

You only have to slow down when the lights for the school zone speed limit are flashing. And the speed limit then is usually 10-20mph. Most schools don't change the normal speed limit at all around them. This school is a different instance though, because the road also changes from 2 lane into a 4 lane road. Regardless, the speed limit sign was covered and cops monopolized on that in order to ticket people.

 

[Mell]

Traffic laws seem to work, in the German city suburb, where I live. There are a lot of families with children in this neighbourhood, and speed rules, signs to say children may cross etc are respected by at least most people. There are also some speed bumps around, just to make sure.

 

[Real Korimyr #9]

I've only ever gotten tickets that I well deserved, and those rarely. There've been a few times when I should have gotten a ticket, but there were no police around.

And once, I got a verbal warning for reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident. That was awesome.

 

[Caine]

Here traffic enforcement is too severe and almost abusive. They go to speed traps and ticket people for speeding when the speed limit sign is hidden by trees and overgrowth. There is a small town where they literally make most of their revenue passing out speeding tickets on 1 road. I have personally never gotten a ticket, but here in Nashville cops are borderline abusive when it comes to ticketing and the like. Plus they lie about your speed and make up details to pass out tickets. If you take them to court you will win the case, but most cops hope that you will just pay the ticket and not waste your time in court.

Ahh the internets.......
I knew I was going to see that one in here somewhere.
Fact of the matter is.... People rarely pay attention to signs along the highway. I do my own unofficial version of finding this out. Everytime I am on a DWI Checkpoint, Every car that passes I ask if they saw the Sign down the street that said DWI Checkpoint Ahead......

Out of 4 hours of checking cars on a friday night... 2 people see the sign. Trees and overgrowth my ass, pay attention to the god damned signs.

 

[digsbe]

Ahh the internets.......
I knew I was going to see that one in here somewhere.
Fact of the matter is.... People rarely pay attention to signs along the highway. I do my own unofficial version of finding this out. Everytime I am on a DWI Checkpoint, Every car that passes I ask if they saw the Sign down the street that said DWI Checkpoint Ahead......

Out of 4 hours of checking cars on a friday night... 2 people see the sign. Trees and overgrowth my ass, pay attention to the god damned signs.

The issue is that there was overgrowth and the cops admitted to it. My dad didn't miss the sign, he couldn't see it through the overgrowth. It's one thing to miss a sign, and it's another to ticket people near a covered one. They literally had an assembly line of vehicles. Cops were acting dishonest and ticketing at an unfair speed trap.

 

[Caine]

The issue is that there was overgrowth and the cops admitted to it. My dad didn't miss the sign, he couldn't see it through the overgrowth. It's one thing to miss a sign, and it's another to ticket people near a covered one. They literally had an assembly line of vehicles. Cops were acting dishonest and ticketing at an unfair speed trap.

Sure. Keep repeating the same thing.

I dont know how many times ive heard that one on the internets....., I tend to not believe it anymore.
It has the same level of credibility as "My Dog Ate My Homework"

Next.....

 

[digsbe]

Sure. Keep repeating the same thing.

I dont know how many times ive heard that one on the internets....., I tend to not believe it anymore.
It has the same level of credibility as "My Dog Ate My Homework"

Next.....

Take it or not, but that's the facts behind what happened. We have dishonest ticket cops here. If you want, a few posts back I shared a story about when my mom challenged a ticket in court and won.

 

[disneydude]

In terms of traffic enforcement....WAAAAAY too lenient. I always say that California could solve its budget crisis if they started issuing tickets. I almost always drive 5-10 miles OVER the speed limit and I would say that 50% of traffic wizzes by me like I am standing still. The main street by my house has a speed limit of 40 MPH, however, I would estimate the average speed is about 60. There is a wreck on that street about 2x a month...and I hardly ever see cops writing tickets....people drive like that because they know that no one is going to stop them.