Is it possible that the residents in those towns simply know better than to speed through their towns?
I drive or ride a motorcycle through a village called Lakeway nearly every day. This town has a reputation as a speed trap. They have never ticketed me. I just know better than to speed through that village.
Or it could be that they just know me as a local, but I doubt it, unless the way I drive fools them.
I dunno, looks to me like first, no one would be going there unless they were lost, and second, doesn’t look like the locals would use main street much, the way the place is laid out. Around here though, the mayor doesn’t have line authority over anyone and would be told to jump in the lake if making that kind of suggestion. Then would answer to the legal system.
My gambling money would be with VDCdriver in regards to never figuring out who was behind running the chief off or any policy regarding ticketing out of towners only as it would all be done outside meeting chambers with a wink and a nod. Small towns are just as corrupt as big ones.
A few decades back the OK tag numbering system used to consist of a 2-letter prefix. That made it very easy to identify the county the car was registered in.
Back then and before the local newspaper became a waste of newsprint, they used to publish a daily listing of all citations issued and to whom, all arrests, and so on.
One could peruse those daily citations and note that approximately 80-90% of them were issued to people who did not live there; and that’s in a small city of 50k people.
What better way to raise money than to ticket someone who will not want to waste a day coming back for a court appearance where they will be found guilty anyway.
I thought that I would revive this thread from a couple of months ago, in order to provide an update regarding what is going on in the rotten little borough of Helmetta, NJ:
I agree with what you said.
I think corruption is as bad or worse in many small towns.
Its amazing the things the police find in my county when they actually pull people over, a cop last week pulled over an intoxicated man after he almost hit him head on, he found warrants, the guys license was revoked, and precursors to methamphetamine production.
They might as well legalize meth, Id say 15-20% of this county is on meth, heroin or pills. Just make it legal, at least that way some people would go the way of the dodo bird from their own stupidity.
The cops around here (NH) are reasonable.
The cops in western Massachusetts will pull over any vehicle with an out of state plate and issue a speeding citation…whether the driver is speeding or not. I worked out there for a year. When I first went there, everyone from the area was puzzled as to why I didn’t have a radar detector. They’re all playing “cat & mouse”. I got to know a cop out there after a while and learned that the amount of tickets they write is considered in their performance reviews, so they ticket out of state vehicles to pad their record on the premise that people from other states are unlikely to return to contest the ticket.
I know there’ll be doubters, but I speak the truth.
Bing, I truly believe that few speeding citations have anything to do with safety. Many roads, Rt 2 in western Mass is an example, have obsolete and unrealistic speed limits, in the case of rt 2 because the highway has been upgraded but the limit never changed to reflect the improvements. These areas are often used as revenue generators for tax-poor rural towns.
The cops in western Massachusetts will pull over any vehicle with an out of state plate and issue a speeding citation....whether the driver is speeding or not.
It’s the same down in the Cape. I got a speeding ticket…cop said I was doing 70. I just got on the highway the pickup I owned at the time. I would have taken me another mile to reach 70 in that truck. I was doing UNDER the speed limit. There was a line of out-of-state cars pulled over. NOT ONE FROM Massachusetts.
Wow, if I ever have to drive through Massachusetts, I think I’ll be sure to document my driving with a GoPro on the dash, like most drivers in Russia do, to prove their innocence in an accident. Might come in handy if you are a victim of a staged accident also.
Somehow, I managed to drive though MA last summer w/o being ticketed.
However, I did note–repeatedly-- that the drivers in that state had to be the worst that I have ever seen in terms of…
aggressiveness…
violation of MV regulations…
common courtesy…
I live and drive in Central NJ–which is legendary for both road congestion and rude drivers–but I have to say that the drivers whom I encountered in Massachusetts made the average/typical NJ driver seem like a saint by comparison.
However, I did note--repeatedly-- that the drivers in that state had to be the worst that I have ever seen in terms of... aggressiveness... violation of MV regulations... common courtesy...
Can’t agree more…I’ve driven in many cities across this country…and Massachusetts drivers are by far the WORSE.
That’s scary that MA drivers are so bad. I figured Indiana would be one of the worst
For a state where half the people drive around in 40k dollar pickups listening to music that has a common theme of not being in a rush, living simply and drinking beer, Indiana has alot of people always in a huge rush. Im not sure where they are in such a hurry to go. Aggressive tailgating, unsafe passing sometimes in no passing zones and following way too closely is the norm here. It happens in all of my vehicles, from prius to pickup, to a real truck. This is all while I go 62 in a 55mph zone on a curvy stretch of road that has many hidden side roads and driveways. I tailed someone one day as an experiment and we ended up cruising at 70-75mph in a 55. If you go 55 you will have someone on your tail, even on a foggy morning with possible ice.
Im the kind of person who would rather live somewhere that you get ticketed for going 3-5mph over the limit, than somewhere like here where there is bare bones minimum enforcement. The speed limit is there for a reason.
The lowest I know of someone getting pulled over for here was 11 over, 66 in a 55mph. She just got a warning. I almost always drive 7 over the limit on main roads and 2 lane highways and still get tailgated and passed all the time. I don’t even bother to slow down when I see a cop because they don’t bother.
There are also Amish Buggies around here, people are really ignorant driving around those, the ignorant rednecks around here call the Amish “stinks” and regularly throw beer bottles at the buggies and horses when they pass them. You can drive around and speed and drink because again there is no enforcement. I have done alot of stupid ignorant things in my life, but I never have tried to hurt someone who is minding their own business, not bothering anyone other than holding up traffic. They have every right to be on the road. The Amish around here never bother anyone, but alot of the ignorant people hate them for no real reason.
A coworkers son was out biking on a two lane road and some idiot in a pickup hit him with his big ol mirror going 40-60mph. The kid said he heard the pickup actually floor it before it happened so it was believed to be intentional. He is a 22 year old with permanent damage to his shoulder. He deserved to be hit because around here people who ride bikes are “treehuggers” and “Nancies” Some of the most ignorant people live in Indiana. Thats part of why I bought a prius, to aggravate the rednecks.
The problem here is they don’t enforce any traffic laws, and that leads to really bad behavior overall. It also leads to other crimes because the chance is if you are driving around with an active meth lab in your vehicle, there is a slim chance of you getting pulled over so there tends to be more of that because there is no fear of getting caught.
How many times do you see a big drug bust, or human traffickers caught because they were pulled over for speeding? When you don’t enforce the most basic of laws you have more crime.
Getting a ticket for going 1mph over is a bit extreme since its hard to stay right at one speed, even with cruise control. And ticketing out of towners for 1mph over is picking on them.
In my time driving a truck, the most aggressive and reckless driving I saw was in the Baltimore area. I admit I didn’t cover the whole country though.
Rick, I would argue that 3-5 mph over the limit is excessive enforcement. Most roads today were designed and built many moons ago and are perfectly safe 10 mph over the posted limit in modern cars… neighborhoods excepted.
And there are still many areas posted at 55mph that were originally 70mph. In the early '70’s, Carter ordered that federal highway funds be withheld from any state that didn’t lower their highway speed limits to 55mph in order to reduce fuel usage during a gas shortage. Many areas never raised them, using them as revenue generators.
Speed limits should be based on safe speeds. But, unfortunately, they far too often no longer are.
By the way, Rick, I discovered in your other (Prius) thread that you try to personally enforce speed limits as absolute limits. Perhaps that behavior is why people get aggressive with you on the roads. Perhaps if you prefer to go slower than the normal flow, you should be considerate of other drivers and give them opportunities to pass you.
And there are still many areas posted at 55mph that were originally 70mph. In the early '70's, Carter ordered that federal highway funds be withheld from any state that didn't lower their highway speed limits to 55mph in order to reduce fuel usage during a gas shortage.
That was 1974 under Nixon NOT Carter.
@the same mountain bike
I don’t try to enforce the speed limit, I usually go 7 over in a 55 mph zone. How fast should I go? 70? 80? These are 2 lane highways with houses everywhere, blind intersections, blind hills. Its 55 for a reason. If someone wants to pass me I let them, But im not slowing down to let them pass when Im already going 7 over.
I have a Cdl. If I get a speeding ticket it a whole other ordeal being a CDL holder.
I put some of the blame on roadways in Massachusetts for the plethora of terrible driving… You get off an expressway at 65 mph on a left lane exit and within 100 yards of entering the exit, there is a right lane exit with an onramp between you and it. The two exits are just to remain on the SAME highway. In conditions like this which force you to cut people off at higher speeds with no time for anyone to see your blinker just to keep from driving an extra ten miles in more rush hour traffic. Now if that doesn’t make you a skitsoid driver…what the heck does ? We have a few on off ramps in our state, but at least they aren’t a high speeds with exits on both sides. No excuses…but you other Mass drivers can come up with more rediculous driving situations this state offers…like downtown Boston.
“In my time driving a truck, the most aggressive and reckless driving I saw was in the Baltimore area. I admit I didn’t cover the whole country though.”
That’s where I live and I agree. You should include DC on that, too. I don’t see much difference in aggression throughout the metro area. Just last night I was on I-695 and was passed by about 5 cars. I was going about 55 to 60 and the passers must have been going 80-ish in a 55 MPH zone. Weaving? Of course. How can you go 80 if you don’t weave? For those that don’t know, I-695 is the Baltimore Beltway. Exits are often a mile or less apart. Driving that fast on a straight highway with exits every 10 miles is one thing, but on a road with constant merging, it seems crazy.
Actually, most of the times I passed through the DC area, the traffic was so congested that aggressive driving wasn’t much of an issue. However, the few times traffic was moving in DC, people were driving aggressively. I figured the aggressive drivers must be lawyers.
I stand corrected. I knew it was some year in the early ‘70s. I remember ol’ Jimmy sitting before the fire in his sweater telling us all that we should turn out heat down and wear sweaters like he and Rosalyn did. Has nothing to do with the 55mph limits, I know, but both were promoted to save energy.