Judge rules auto speedtrap/redlight cameras

[EricKei]

Just to clarify my earlier post -- The cops were already writing enough tickets to fulfill the quota that was created; they reduced the number of tickets that they wrote when it became a requirement. There was no good reason for the Council to create the requirement, it was just someone up there trying to "remind" the po-po Exactly Who Is In Charge Around Here. The officers were well aware of this, hence their reaction

As for widespread corruption...Well duh ^_^ I grew up in Louisiana, where we don't speculate whether our elected officials are corrupt, we simply assume that they are, and take bets on what their intake of graft (cash money in unmarked envelopes and the like) has been to date, and whether they will ever actually be prosecuted for it.

A few years back, our (infamous) former Governor, Edwin W Edwards (lovingly referred to as EWE) was prosecuted and sent to jail for a long career filled with such activities. When local news stations went out to interview citizens for their opinions, the response was universal: -- Q: "Did he do what he is accused of?" -- A: "Yeah, probably." -- Q: "Should he have to pay for his crimes?" -- A: "No, why?"

[Chromatix]

I find it hard to believe that there is no way to prove that signs and signals are not up to standard. Even if you don't have a dashcam fitted at the time, you could go back the same day and check that you didn't miss any signs. Most phones these days are capable of recording video, even if only in very low quality in some cases, so you should be able to make a record of the route which shows that there was no 25mph sign in place, or that the yellow phase of a signal was obviously too short.

If the signs say 40mph, then 40mph is the "posted speed limit". If the radar gun then says 41mph, that's within the accuracy tolerance of your speedometer and should not be prosecuted. You could successfully argue that your speedometer *did* read 40mph.

In Britain, there was recently a case where inspectors found that an electronic motorway sign, which was present, clearly visible, and displaying the correct speeds in various situations, was using slightly the wrong font - and were forced to cancel and refund many speeding tickets that had been issued on that section of the motorway over the previous several years. Personally, I hope that they didn't have to cancel tickets for speeds clearly in excess of the universal motorway speed limit (70mph).

Likewise, traffic signals in Britain and Europe are required to conform to national safety standards, which include a requirement that the yellow phase of a signal must be sufficient to permit any car approaching (within the speed limit) to either pass it before it turns red (and then to clear the junction before the opposing signal clears), or to stop at the signal with allowance for reaction time and the normal range of braking performance. If such standards are routinely violated in America, is it any surprise that many motorists do not treat signals with respect?

[bara]

Likewise, traffic signals in Britain and Europe are required to conform to national safety standards, which include a requirement that the yellow phase of a signal must be sufficient to permit any car approaching (within the speed limit) to either pass it before it turns red (and then to clear the junction before the opposing signal clears), or to stop at the signal with allowance for reaction time and the normal range of braking performance. If such standards are routinely violated in America, is it any surprise that many motorists do not treat signals with respect?

Its funny you mention that, I could swear that the yellow lights around here have been shortened considerably over the past few months.

There have been many many studies showing that adequate yellow light time is essential for safety and one of the requirements for red-light cameras from many of the companies that run them is that the lights are shortened.

[EricKei]

you could go back the same day and check that you didn't miss any signs.

Once, many many years ago, my mom got busted for running a stop sign in a residential area that she did not see. The cop was lurking just beyond it, out of sight of where she came from, for just this purpose. When she asked him where the sign was, he walked her to the corner and pulled back the branches of a broad, leafy tree that totally obscured the sign from where she was (well, almost. if you were walking along there you could probably see the part of the signpost that was nearest the ground...). Still got a ticket x.x

[Racket_Man]

Once, many many years ago, my mom got busted for running a stop sign in a residential area that she did not see. The cop was lurking just beyond it, out of sight of where she came from, for just this purpose. When she asked him where the sign was, he walked her to the corner and pulled back the branches of a broad, leafy tree that totally obscured the sign from where she was (well, almost. if you were walking along there you could probably see the part of the signpost that was nearest the ground...). Still got a ticket x.x

I heard a similiar story years ago except when the person returned to take photos of the obscured stop/speed lilmit sign, the bush had been mysteriously pruned or cut down completely.