I got a ticket!

[Shurup]

In Edmonton where I live, there is a default speed limit 50 kmph (about 31 mph). In almost every situation I am speeding 20 kmph (12.5 mph) over the speed limit cause I still can't get used to drive that slow (I am from Russia and there I belive no cities with such low speed limit). I don't think that I am dangerous for other drivers or other people cause I don't speed (or don't speed that much) in situations where there is a possibility that someone or something will jump in front of my truck. Always keep in mined that if I don't see very clear what's going on on both sides of the road I don't speed. And I never had any tickets (only one for parking ).

One funny thing happened to me about a year ago. I was driving my Camaro on a Whitemud Drive (freeway in Edmonton with 50 mph speed limit) at my usual speed 12.5 mph over the limit. In my rear view mirror I saw that a guy on the old-rusty-ugly-chevy truck was trying to keep up with me. I said to myself "OK, looks like the guy wanna race". I let him line up with me and then I floored it. In the rear view mirror I saw that the guy sucked but yet was truing to keep up with me. I removed my foot from the gas pedal and let him lined up with me and then I saw that the guy was a COP and I took a look at my speedometer and it was reading about 85 mph and I said "OOOOHHHH F**K !!!!!!!!!!!!! He showed me to pull over which I did and he get out of his truck and his face was red in color (he was that mad). He asked for my documents and I gave him all I had except for my registration (couldn't find that damned paper cause it wasn't with me at that moment). I said I can't find it and he looked through my documents and then he said that for the speed I was driving there is a $500 CAN fee, towing away car and taking away drivers license. I was pissed off but then he threw me my documents and said something like "don't try it like an idiot!" After he wen't away I wasn't speeding at all or the whole month or so.

Sorry for the long post, but not everyone in his life has a chance to race with cop.

 

[guitar814]

I am surprised that so many of you (or anyone) can be a traffic cop supporter. The idea of traffic law enforcement is one of the most unjust actions taken by our government. Before you start to get mad listen to what I have to say. The fundamental goal of traffic laws and enforcement is to MAKE MONEY FOR THE GOVERNMENT! to pay that officer and that department. Officers are paid by the number of tickets they give out. What do you think that they are going to do? It is not about making the roads a safer place. Every automobile today is capable of safely traveling at speeds of 100 Mph and significantly above that in some cases. The laws are set at an inhibiting speed 55 or 65 mph and occasionally a 75 mph zone. Do you not hate it when traffic is moving along just fine and then it comes to a halt, you slow down and on top of the hill you see that the slow down is due to the fact that some obese state trooper has someone pulled over for speeding. I have a 1998 Explorer and it feels perfectly comfortable at 100-110 where my governor kicks in. I agree that there do need to be limits to speeds in neighborhoods and around town but on the interstate the left lane should be what ever your car will do (depending on the amount of traffic of course). Have you ever been on the interstate and not seen another car, why limit yourself to 65 if no one else is on the highway? Here are some web sites that criticize the practice of speed limits.

http://www.speedtrap.org/ look at some of the links
http://www.motorists.org/
http://www.motorists.org/issues/tickets/secrets.html
http://www.speedtrap.org/ http://www.motorists.org/

 

[GaSouthern1]

Seeing that you are from Atlanta, as I am, you know as good as I do that there is NO highway in Atl. where it is safe to do 100. I am sorry, I dont care how safe you "feel" at that speed it is just not safe, all someone has to do is pull out in front of you or swerve to miss something and you are toast...can you guess how many times your X will roll when you slam on the brakes and get a little sideways at 100. Sure there are cops out there that do not act "ethically" but a good majority of them are out there to keep the road safe, when I see people weaving through traffic I get in front of them on the highway, it is just stupid to try to go 100 down 85 where there is ALWAYS a wealth of people on the road. I got slapped with 2 big tickets last summer by Duluth cops, I am glad i got them, they cost me A LOT of money but I was guilty for what I was doing and I am thankful for them getting me because it shocked me into reality, public roads are no place to do highly excessive speeds like that. Even if you think you can drive at 100 through traffic, it is the other people on the road you need to think about...saying that "i should be able to do whatever speed I feel comfortable with" is crazy and just ridiculous.

 

[Stephen]

Originally posted by guitar814
I am surprised that so many of you (or anyone) can be a traffic cop supporter. The idea of traffic law enforcement is one of the most unjust actions taken by our government. Before you start to get mad listen to what I have to say. The fundamental goal of traffic laws and enforcement is to MAKE MONEY FOR THE GOVERNMENT! to pay that officer and that department. Officers are paid by the number of tickets they give out

I agree that speed enforcement as it is is simply a moneymaking machine. There is a lot of evidence that speed limits have very little effect on defacto speeds on highways, raising, lowering, and eleminating them changed defacto speed by something like 1%. The argument is that traffic deaths and on the decline, and people are going to drive the 80th percentile speed anyways, so the limits should be raised to that. These people claim that limits are atificially too low for roadways to make money, and that any road where 80% of motorists (the flow of traffic) is higher that the limit shows that the speed limit is not set to the will of the people.

However, this isn't the policeman's fault. Thats just his job, he doesnt make the laws. Get mad at your congressman or representative, not the cops. They're just earning a living like you and me.

As for officers being paid by how many tickets they give out, this si untrue. At least most places nowadays. Some areas use a quota system, but they dont make more if they write more tickets.

The REAL injustice around here is these damn traffic cameras. They dont even bother with points anymore, they just mail you a bill for as little as 1 over. They park unmarked cars on the sides of streets with these cameras on the dash.

 

[Rick]

Not much makes me angrier than people getting tickets for 1mph over the limit. Who comes up with crap like that. Ask 1000 people who drive and 999 will disagree with getting a ticket for 1 over.

 

[DaHeinah]

I'm with you on that Stephen! By the time you get your ticket, you probably will have forgotten how fast you were going and where you were.
However, to say that speed limits are absurd and merely money-making schemes developed by our government is nothing short of ridiculous. Are there roads where the speed limit are seemingly too slow? Yes. Are there locations where cops will purposefully hang out due to the abnormally low speed limit? Yes. It should be noted, however, that such repercussions one may face as a result of ignoring such limits are a fault on the part of the assailant, not the cop. Speed limits are established to reduce risk for collision, whether that be with pedestrians, inanimant objects, or other vehicles. It therefore behooves all motorists to obey such laws.
Using the same logic that was described above against speed limits, shouldn't it also thus be assumed that tail-gating laws should also be ignored? The lady who follows me every morning on my way to University who tailgates me in her new excursion (it's even lifted- why does she need a lifted excursion- it's always clean ) looks perfectly comfortable riding that closely...I sure as heck don't. Should she be allowed to ride my butt so closely that all I see is her ford emblem in my rear-view- she feels ok about it??? If, for whatever reason, I had to brake or come to an abrupt halt, I have a feeling that her big diesel will be providing free vibrations to my seat. More considerate drivers and better drivers.
That's my rant...
greg

 

[rokke17]

Originally posted by Rick
Not much makes me angrier than people getting tickets for 1mph over the limit. Who comes up with crap like that. Ask 1000 people who drive and 999 will disagree with getting a ticket for 1 over.

And all 1000 will be guilty of doing it.

I got one a few years ago for 6 over on the freeway, and Im still pissed about it

 

[cdsl227]

Speed limits or not I think the truth of it is- you guys all fail to take into account that these "speed limits" and "traffic laws" are set because:

1) yes all traffic laws are a money maker for the local government.

2) they are there to exert "control" over your actions, something the government is big on. There is no bastion within this coutry where the government doesn't make sure you know who's really in control.

3) to protect all the idiots that should never have gotten the "right" to get behind the wheel of a weapon that outweighs a bullet.

4) because they'll never create a moratorium on licensing because of the buck$- tickets, licensing, registration, insurance, accidents, injuries, and deaths generate.

Sad, but true.

Not that I hate the government, I Love The USA! But sad fact is- there are too many assholes making laws to protect the few that should NEVER be allowed to breed.

 

[AintNoFantasy]

i do disagree with these "speed cameras" of which i have never seen, and i also don't see much logic in pulling people over for a couple miles an hour over...the only reason i can find for that would be that the cop suspected something else might be wrong with the situation and decided to check it out, but i don't know...all i know i that when start patrolling the streets i'm just there to uphold the law and treat every situation differently, not just be that stone faced-cop who there is no reasoning with.

 

[guitar814]

Thank you cdsl227 and Stephen the best thing to do is to always fight a speeding ticket. The fines are set where they are not high enough to anger the citizen enough but to be more of an annoyance to go to court. Somewhere near 90% of opposed tickets are reduced or thrown out. One thing that helps is to change your court date because the officers schedule all of their court hearings the same day and if you change it then there is a good chance that the officer will not be able to show up and you win by default. There are many interstates in the Atlanta area with little traffic at times. I also hate those who weave through traffic along with those who go 50 in the left lane. I-16 south of Macon has no car ever on it why not be like the autobahn? GA-400 south in the afternoons I will pass 5 cars. I also love the USA but do not like big government and oppose and government action or program that interferes with my everyday life. One of the only necessities for this country is a strong military to strike fear in the hearts of those who might threaten this great country of ours.

God bless the USA

 

[diablo5969]

Originally posted by guitar814
GA-400 south in the afternoons I will pass 5 cars.

Where on 400 do you drive? From like 2-5 it's always full of traffic

 

[AintNoFantasy]

oh, and by the way, good luck to you too, FourXFred, and stay safe.

 

[FourXFred]

all i know i that when start patrolling the streets i'm just there to uphold the law and treat every situation differently, not just be that stone faced-cop who there is no reasoning with.

which is exactly what they are teaching us future cops to do. good luck to you as well AintNoFantasy

 

[Muskrat]

Originally posted by diablo5969
How does that work?

corrupt town cops, nothing to do, he was very upset to see I didn't have any points, and couldn't find anything wrong with what I was doing, so he had to let me go, but I know he would have loved to get me with the wonderful careless driving ticket that these cops give out when they think you are in the wrong, but can't prove it. That is BS, getting a ticket, for speeding, is what they are supposed to do. safe driving pays off, trust me

 

[wpurple]

..but what really ticks me off is my boss at works son is a cop and all he says is his son is a cop and he is off the hook. He got stopped 3 times so far this year for 85 in a 55 and NO TICKET!
That's really messed up, didn't do me anygood when the cop gave me reckless for doing 88mph in a 65 zone.

Maybe I could get away with saying my brother is a cop or something.

 

[onelasttry]

From the op:

I had saved 100$ for a chip,

Seems like it goes fast enough

 

[Chew_12]

Seems like it goes fast enough

LOL
Thats what i was thinking. It made me think about not getting a chip for about a day, then I realized that I was crazy

 

[matey]

so cool this afternoon finshed an apartment in the city come down stairs a to a line of cars parked on a no parking zone all with a ticket. get to mine. NO TICKET. may be my lucks changing.