myfirstimport

I was dropping my daughter off at the sitter, and was going down a remote street between 2 old train tracks.

Not thinking too much about the cop I see comming the other way. He flashes his lights at me and as he get closer he is mouthing t "slow down" and motioning to slow down.

I waved back and slowed. I was doing 45 in a 30. This street is so remote, people normally do 60. Oh well, nice guy I thought.

beep-beep

If you would drive a BMW or Porsche, you would get a ticket

CleanAudi

with my friend in his brand new 325I, following our other friends in their brand new M3, and a X5 just driving in the high way, CHP pulls up to the X5, points at him, then pulls up to the M3, points at hime, pulls up beside us, points at us. Makes us all get off the highway, line up, and gave us and our friend in the M3 speeding tickets, while the X5 got a warnining. We werent even speeding

timcar

Got stopped twice early on with my 2.7T but not ticketed. I know that there aren't any quota systems ;-), but there's a huge variability in enforcement that seems to often coincide with the beginning or end of a calendar month. Coincidence? If speed enforcement hadn't become an institutionalized form of municipal revenue and insurance premium enhancement, I think most of the men and women in uniform would rather be out chasing terrorists.

I had to chuckle a few months ago when someone mentioned a National Insurance Institute, or something, being in favor or photo radar as evidence that it promotes safety. I'd be surprised if they didn't wish one was on every corner! Every time you get a ticket, they get to raise your rates!

phred

Red light cameras hit LA a year or two ago, and at first they were only installed at intersections with a bad record of accidents caused by red light runners. Nothing wrong with that, and in fact they seemed to help.

Then slowly they started to creep into other cities and intersections, and it was found that many systems were being tweaked during install to go off more than necessary (or legal). Gee, I wonder if revenue generation had anything to do with it?!?!?

Definitely

and thus have started tweaking them to be more and more sensitive. My favorite story though, about the cameras was a letter in a motorcycle mag about 10 or 12 years ago, soon after Campbell CA deployed the first cameras in the country. A motorcyclist received a picture of himself on his bike on the main street in Campbell, with a ticket for speeding. He got the cash to pay the ticket, put it in his hand, fanned it out, took a picture of it, and sent it back to the issuing agency! Never did hear if he got away with it, though.