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as someone who went through the NMSL at a fairly constant 65-70 and collected more than a few tickets, I'm glad it is history. While I was often one of the faster cars on the road in those days, now my usual 75-80 puts me in the flow of traffic.
I've always thought speed in itself is not the issue. Insurance studies I've seen have indicated it is more often "speed too fast for conditions" which can be weather, traffic, road conditions, etc. I think of some runs I've done at 100+ with no other cars on a dry, clear road, and know I wouldn't have been able to get out of the ticket, I do question the way laws are enforced. But then this is the U.S. where the big things in a driver's license exam are parking, using turn signals and not going over the posted 30-40 mph limit.
I drive from NH to NYC and out to Rochester, NY fairly often. The troopers in NY and CT generally sit on the median running radar and looking for the guys who haven't figured out that being alone in the left lane at 90 makes them really good targets. If business is slow the cops go after someone going 11 mph over the limit--their tolerance level. I have *never* seen them pull someone over who was driving erratically, tailgating, etc. I've gone by them at 10 over the limit with some yahoo a car length off my bumper and the cop doesn't even blink.
And most speed enforcement does seem to be about revenue rather than safety. I think radar technology makes it easy to give out speeding tickets because it is based on an objective measure: this guy was going 21 mph over the limit. But pulling people over for tailgating, weaving, etc., is more subjective, and not really measurable/quantifiable. And I suspect that while most people don't fight radar-based tickets, they will go to court for other charges related to poor driving--and be able to walk away or gete the fine reduced because it is more subjective. That uses up court and cop time and makes the "profit margin" on the ticket thinner. Just my opinion.
posted by 24.52.16...
, Mon, 25 Apr 2005 12:52:41, Mon, 25 Apr 2005 13:38:22, Mon, 25 Apr 2005 12:47:41
, Mon, 25 Apr 2005 04:14:36
, Sun, 24 Apr 2005 20:21:53, Mon, 25 Apr 2005 07:16:07, Sun, 24 Apr 2005 22:40:59
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