Why Aren't Automatic Speeding Tickets Issued?

[cooch96]

It's all about revenue, not traffic safety.

I like to give politicians the benefit of the doubt and figure it's intended to be sort of about safety (maybe 10%).

Another gripe (valid complaint) about cameras in my neck of the woods is that they mostly catch folks who roll through reds while taking a right turn. This is a low accident causing act; people who slow down enough to check to make sure they are clear before proceeding don't cause anymore accidents than those who stop completely and then proceed to right on red.

The sudden addition of traffic cameras led to some folks who would be driving their usual, safe route, suddenly remember they were on camera, and slam on their breaks, which led to rear end collisions. So the anti-camera crowd now had valid data that cameras sometimes increase collision rates.

The intersections I'm thinking of were recently fixed by installing lights with blinking Amber arrows and adding a special right-turn lane. This greatly improved traffic and reduced accidents much more than those silly cameras ever did. The cameras are still up though, a testament to the ratcheting of the surveillance state on the people.

My point is we can improve safety and traffic flow by better traffic design and saner speed limits (90+ thru Utah, the Kansas Turnpike, and much of Texas is entirely reasonable in good driving conditions) while not infringing on the modicum of privacy we still enjoy as we try to go about our days unmolested.

 

[utrecht]

Another of a long list of reasons not to use cameras to issue tickets of any kind. Police officers have discretion. Machines do not. A camera would issue a speeding ticket to someone trying to hurry to get his pregnant wife to the hospital. Most officers would give them an escort instead. I could give more than enough other examples, but you get the point.

 

[Whisper66]

Wouldn't it be a slam dunk to set up cameras that measure speed, photograph the license plates, and send a bill? -- Might be if there were things called Voters. I am one of the many voters that get tired of the increasing government oversight of everything we do and consider that in my voting. I wouldn't mind if that workload was focused on things that were really important. Would be highly supportive of more aggressively getting drunk drivers off the road and keeping them off the road for example. Setting up autobilling systems to catch everyday folks going over the speed limit just doesn't come close to being a significant issue. Now if you wanted to limit that to something very excessive (say 15 mph or more over), I might buy into that being very dangerous and worth some effort. Would stop some of the drag racing we see late at night on the local highways. Just one voters opinion.

 

[bingybear]

My point is we can improve safety and traffic flow by better traffic design and saner speed limits (90+ thru Utah, the Kansas Turnpike, and much of Texas is entirely reasonable in good driving conditions) while not infringing on the modicum of privacy we still enjoy as we try to go about our days unmolested.

finally reason, change the laws... speed limit where appropriate. May have to consider what is safe not just for your car, but all cars that are permitted on those roads. That said, I had a skoda falicia back in the late '90s going 90 or so mph or so with a 1.285 liter engine (German autobahn).

Another of a long list of reasons not to use cameras to issue tickets of any kind. Police officers have discretion. Machines do not. A camera would issue a speeding ticket to someone trying to hurry to get his pregnant wife to the hospital. Most officers would give them an escort instead. I could give more than enough other examples, but you get the point.

A camera or other method would not stop them, but provide a ticket where they could explain their specific reason for breaking the law. If we assumed all these excuses were valid and acceptable, what percentage of people breaking the law would you estimate would be covered by valid excuses? Now be honest here. If the owners car could issue tickets for speeding and do it accurately, what percentage would not have a valid reason like pregnant wife? BTW, when I drove my wife to the hospital for our first child, I had to slow down because she complained about every bump in the road.

 

[karen1972]

I hate the idea of speed cameras, maybe if they were only used for reckless endangerment (ie those going 25 mph over posted speedlimit). We are already fined all the time and those red light cameras cause nothing but accidents. Sorry but almost no one comes to a complete stop (counting to 5) on right turn EVERY time, but when you have one on your corner its just unfair.. seriously you too would find them ridiculous if they were on your corner tracking your every stop... they are nothing but there for revenue generation. (Yes now I have to sit at every light and count to 5 ... seriously getting REALLY annoying)... especially when you get home at night at 2AM ...sitting on an empty road.. terrified to turn right because god forbid you didn't wait long enough.

 

[utrecht]

A red light camera went up at the intersection where we turned right to go into our neighborhood. My wife and I both got 1 ticket each while not making a complete stop while turning right. We never did it again so you could argue that the camera works, but we watched the video on both occasions and there was nobody even in the intersection besides us so in my opinion, there was no need for the ticket. As a retired police officer, I consider that to be an over intrusion by the government. The cameras in our suburb were taken down after about a year. Im not sure of the reason but I suspect it had to do with the cameras not producing enough revenue after the first few months when people stopped making a rolling right turn.

These are the kinds of circumstances where a police officers discretion would be nice as opposed to a machine sending you a robotic ticket.

If its 1am and there is hardly anyone on the road, do we as a society really care if someone drives 55 in a 40 MPH zone? I know I dont. Driving 55 in a 40 with nobody around is not unsafe at all.

 

[ERD50]

...

It's all about revenue, not traffic safety.

I've got no problem with that (though I'm more along the lines of the following quote, maybe 10% safety?) - Since we are going to collect revenue, might as well get it from the people who break the law. Bring it on!

I like to give politicians the benefit of the doubt and figure it's intended to be sort of about safety (maybe 10%).

Another gripe (valid complaint) about cameras in my neck of the woods is that they mostly catch folks who roll through reds while taking a right turn. This is a low accident causing act; people who slow down enough to check to make sure they are clear before proceeding don't cause anymore accidents than those who stop completely and then proceed to right on red. ...

A red light camera went up at the intersection where we turned right to go into our neighborhood. My wife and I both got 1 ticket each while not making a complete stop while turning right. ...

Well, the law is "right turn on red after a complete STOP", it isn't "right turn on red after YIELD" - so why not just obey the law? Or petition for a change (some intersections around me have YIELD signs, so you can roll through, no problem).

The problem is, I obey the law (regardless of whether I know there is a red light camera at that intersection or not). And I'm in constant fear of getting rear-ended because the person behind me assumes I'm just gonna roll through, and not stop. I shouldn't be put at risk for obeying the law. If the law was enforced, the vast majority would stop, and they would not be assuming that I'm not gonna stop.

Laws will never be perfect, but if they are in place they should be enforced, and changed if wrong. This wishy-washy enforcement leads to a disrespect of laws in general, and chaos (Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!).

-ERD50

 

[gcgang]

I hate the idea of robo ticketing speeders.

How about robo ticketing the morons that drive below the speed limit in the passing lane?

 

[samclem]

Which is the better option:
A) Have fewer laws that are sensible and minimally intrusive on personal liberty, and then enforce them effectively, efficiently, and fairly.
B) Have lots of laws with lots of grey areas and "allowable discretion" that are enforced through subjective, expensive and inefficient hit-and-miss methods.

I think Option A increases individual liberty, reduces potential for abuse by authorities, and improves respect for the laws that remain in the books. That's the way to increased freedom and increased safety--but just my opinion.

 

[aaronc879]

I hate the idea of robo ticketing speeders.

How about robo ticketing the morons that drive below the speed limit in the passing lane?

You should be at or below the speed limit in either lane. If the speed limit is 65 and i'm coming up on a car that is going 60 then I can pass that car while going 65. If someone comes up behind me going 80 and they have to slow down until I finish my pass, i'm not in the wrong. I'm not obligated to speed up past the maximum legal speed to accommodate someone who is breaking the law.

I do agree though that if the right lane is clear then you should move to that lane. If it's not clear to move to the right then I am not obligated to increase my speed above the maximum allowed. The people who want to break the law can wait.

 

[braumeister]

These are the kinds of circumstances where a police officers discretion would be nice as opposed to a machine sending you a robotic ticket.

If its 1am and there is hardly anyone on the road, do we as a society really care if someone drives 55 in a 40 MPH zone? I know I dont. Driving 55 in a 40 with nobody around is not unsafe at all.

I'm with you, firmly in the anti-camera ticket camp, but I have to laugh when I think of how these things would go over in some countries.

I used to live in Rio de Janeiro, one of the highest crime cities in the world, and when driving home late in the evening, absolutely NOBODY stopped for even a red light. We just did the automobile samba through intersections as needed, and accidents were few and far between. The reason of course is that if you stopped and waited for a green light, you would almost certainly be carjacked, robbed, and possibly worse.