Finally a reason to buy a radar detector...

[SacramentoMike]

Wish I knew what state you're talking about, El T. ^ ^ ^

I guess... but a mile over the speed limit is just ludicrous.

I know, right? Those damn laws. I knew somebody who shot a guy and the guy lingered for several days before he died. And they charged him with murder anyway! I mean, the guy almost LIVED! What a rip.

OK, but seriously, if anybody gets a +1 mph ticket behind this, please post up about the whole experience.

 

[luvtoride]

I do like these (most of the time).

The speed signs let me check when my radar detector goes off and then how close I get to the sign before it can detect my motorcycle and post the speed. It gives me an idea of how my bike will perform with police radar. My radar detector goes off at the same distance, car or bike, but on the bike I can get twice as close to the sign before the radar return signal is strong enough for the sign's radar to read. Well, except for the car I have now, it has almost the same stealth factor as the bike. My car is low and has a very rounded front profile. Unfortunately, the sign quite readily and willingly will post the speed of the car/truck way behind me until I get close.

There is always a but... The local town of Plaistow NH hides a cruiser with a radar gun out of sight from the road but where they can read the speed sign. A unlucky SOB wildly dangerous miscreant drives past the sign at some important amount over the posted speed limit and the sign posts his speed; the cop reads the sign and then shoots you with his radar gun for a positive kill. Your radar detector can't help you like this, even with arrows on the detector.

An unrealistic speed threshold like 1 mph doesn't change a thing. Any LEO that has a reason to want to stop you can pull you over anyway at 1 mph, or pull you over because your tire touched the yellow line or any other marginal violation. There are some states where the courts will charge you for contesting a ticket, under the pretense of paying the court costs. In this case the 1 mph could be misused. Massachusetts:

I got a traffic ticket and want to challenge it. What do I do? If the “criminal complaint application” or “arrest” box is checked, then you have been charged with a crime. Your case will go before a judge or magistrate as a criminal matter. If you are also charged with civil infractions, they will be covered during the criminal hearing. You cannot challenge them separately.

Send the citation and a $25 filing fee to the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) at the address listed on the back of the citation. Mail the citation within 20 days of the date you were cited. Pay the fee by check or money order.

Alan, I often speed up when I see those things.

 

[Madmudder]

I do like these (most of the time).

The speed signs let me check when my radar detector goes off and then how close I get to the sign before it can detect my motorcycle and post the speed. It gives me an idea of how my bike will perform with police radar. My radar detector goes off at the same distance, car or bike, but on the bike I can get twice as close to the sign before the radar return signal is strong enough for the sign's radar to read. Well, except for the car I have now, it has almost the same stealth factor as the bike. My car is low and has a very rounded front profile. Unfortunately, the sign quite readily and willingly will post the speed of the car/truck way behind me until I get close.

There is always a but... The local town of Plaistow NH hides a cruiser with a radar gun out of sight from the road but where they can read the speed sign. A unlucky SOB wildly dangerous miscreant drives past the sign at some important amount over the posted speed limit and the sign posts his speed; the cop reads the sign and then shoots you with his radar gun for a positive kill. Your radar detector can't help you like this, even with arrows on the detector.

An unrealistic speed threshold like 1 mph doesn't change a thing. Any LEO that has a reason to want to stop you can pull you over anyway at 1 mph, or pull you over because your tire touched the yellow line or any other marginal violation. There are some states where the courts will charge you for contesting a ticket, under the pretense of paying the court costs. In this case the 1 mph could be misused. Massachusetts:

I got a traffic ticket and want to challenge it. What do I do? If the “criminal complaint application” or “arrest” box is checked, then you have been charged with a crime. Your case will go before a judge or magistrate as a criminal matter. If you are also charged with civil infractions, they will be covered during the criminal hearing. You cannot challenge them separately.

Send the citation and a $25 filing fee to the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) at the address listed on the back of the citation. Mail the citation within 20 days of the date you were cited. Pay the fee by check or money order.

Alan, I often speed up when I see those things.

What if you are doing triple digits 135? does it show the first 2 or last 2 digits?

 

[Fred W]

Why is it any more ludicrous to pull you over for 1 mph over the arbitrary limit than 11, or 21, or... whatever is customary in your area?

If the speed limits were set realistically, as an actual maximum limit instead of the "conservative suggestion" that they are everywhere today, they would be considerably higher and, get this, they would be easier to consistently enforce.

Every vehicle manufacturer already designs their speedometer to either intentionally read low or be dead nuts on. When a driver is exceeding the speed limit he or she knows it (if they bother to look at the speedo). The way it is now, you already know that you can drive "X" over the limit (around here it is 10) so that is the speed you go and try to stay below. If the speed limits were set to where they should be, and the enforcement was right at the limit, it would take a lot of the subjectivity out of enforcement.

If you did not agree with the too conservative limits you could get involved with an effort to change them. Or you could do what we all do now, continue to blatantly ignore them by however much we think we can get away with and just whine about it when we get caught. I'm as guilty as the next guy of all of this.

There is one other very negative psychological effect of having the current artificially low speed limits that everyone routinely breaks: And that is that regular, otherwise "law abiding" people become conditioned to it being OK to constantly break the law. So if it's OK to stretch that law, which other ones are OK to bend a little bit? And as is the case now, law enforcement becomes the nemesis of the driving public.

 

[Jim_McG]

Most of our cars / trucks read accurately against my GPS, but my BMW bike's speedometer reads 10% higher than actual by design. There is a jumper fix to make it accurate but I haven't bothered - I use my GPS for speed. There's a known speed trap on my way to work - posted 45 mph and 10 over you get a performance award. The tickets pay for new cruisers every year.

Jim

 

[PhilJet09]

I think something like 30 states have "absolute" speed limits. While enforcement may be slightly tolerant, the law is the law.

NC is not an exception.

Why are motorcyclists so bent on speeding and so affronted

when they get caught?

If you're not gonna dance, don't wear the shoes.

But if you're gonna dance, sometimes you gotta pay the band.

Riding through Oklahoma a week ago, I saw signed that read:
Speed Limit. 75

Minimum Speed. 50

No Tolerance

This made me chuckle as I thought "well actually, the tolerance would be 25"...

Then I slowed down.

 

[Mudslide Miller]

In AZ, 1 to 5 miles over the speed limit is not even a speeding ticket, it is considered a "waste of finite resources". How do I know; because I got one. Decided to creep past a motorcycle DPS officer that was holding back 5 lanes of freeway traffic going exactly 55 in a 55 zone. The asswipe pulled me over and wrote me up for 57 in a 55. It was classed as a 'waste of finite resources'. Fine only; no points on my license. Exactly that; a 'revenue generator'!! F'in BS.

 

[Uncle Hud]

Have to agree with FredW on his one. Speed limits are posted clearly and I assume each of us can read the signs. If it says "SPEED LIMIT 35" like the example above, you are in violation at 36 mph.

Whether or not the local PD or Highway Patrol will write you up is not the issue to me; if you ride faster than the posted speed, you are breaking the law. How can you complain about receiving the advertised punishment for violating the law?

Got my most recent ticket near Greensboro (NC) about a year ago, and ..... well ..... it was justified and I deserved it.

For what it's worth, those radar "YOUR SPEED IS" signs irritate me. I ride by two of them almost every day, and always try to hit them at 60 mph ... then slow back down to 40 mph (5 over) and engage the cruise control. And if I get ticketed for doing that, I won't complain, because I already know it's illegal.

 

[NormKern]

Speedo on my '14 FJR reads between 1-2 over actual speed at around 80 mph. Speedos in my Ford Ranger & Nissan Maxima are 3-4 over at that speed. My experience is that vehicle speedos are usually a few mph optimistic to right on- never read slower than you are going.

Radar detectors are much less effective than they used to be, but my Valentine One saves my ass multiple times per year. Hell, if it only saves one ticket per year, it's paying for itself and then some. A major value of a radar detector is as a teaching machine. Over time it teaches you situational awareness so you develop a sense of places you need to be careful.

My other strategy is to save my highest speeds for places where visibility is good and there is so little traffic that it's not cost effective for leo to be there.

Norm Kern

 

[ionbeam]

Where I have significant daily problems with the speed limit is around towns where the speed limit is 25-30 mph and the road begs for 40 to 45 mph. Yesterday I was going through a local town with an unrealistically low speed limit when my radar detector went off. Fortunately the radar unit in the cruiser was set for a much greater distance than it should have been leaving me ample time to look at my speedometer and confirm that I was doing the speed limit Of course I was

With that extra time to 'confirm my speed' I did not get a ticket, unlike the car behind me that was closing on me very quickly and ignoring my brake lights. There were a few seconds where I was unsure for whom the lights tolled, but it became clear it was for the car behind me.

My first line of defense against a radar gun is simply to have situational awareness. The radar detector is a third level fail-safe device after situational awareness which includes observation of the traffic actions in both directions and frequent use of the FZ1 mirrors

@ Luvto -- A local major highway (Rt 93) used to have a speed sign attached to a bridge at the crest of a hill. People used to use it as a game to see who could ring up the highest speed. Most of the times I went past that sign I was surprised to find that I was the vehicle that posted a three digit speed. However, sometimes a Traffic Enforcer would be sitting just on the other side of the hill reading the sign's speed transmission, leading to heart attacks, adrenalin spikes and serious, if not near fatal speeding tickets.

 

[Fred W]

In AZ, 1 to 5 miles over the speed limit is not even a speeding ticket, it is considered a "waste of finite resources".

That is not the case in NH. I had the opportunity to check into the speeding fine schedule last fall when I was pulled over after passing a car in a legal 2-lane passing zone for having exceeded the speed limit. He said he clocked me on radar at 20 over, but I'm fairly certain it may have been higher and he said 20 because of the fine schedule (below).

NH Uniform Fine Schedule (as of 10/1/2015)
Posted Speed 55mph or less

Speeding 1-10 over limit $62

Speeding 11-15 over limit $93

Speeding 16-20 over limit $124

Speeding 21-25 over limit $248

Speeding 25+ over limit - Must Appear

Posted Speed 65mph or 70mph

Speeding 1- 5 over limit $80

Speeding 6-10 over limit $124

Speeding 11-15 over limit $186

Speeding 16-20 over limit $310

Speeding 21-25 over limit $434

Speeding 26+ over limit - Must Appear

Keep in mind that on the highways of NH the average traffic moves along at the $124 - $186 per ticket rate. For you to stand out from the crowd you need to be in the $310 per ticket or above rates.

Now... if the speed limits were set correctly where the average traffic was not above the limit, then the above schedule would make a whole lot more sense.

 

[dcarver]

There were a few seconds where I was unsure for whom the lights tolled, but it became clear it was for the car behind me.

:rofl:

Speed kills.

Stay Alive at 55.

Got a radar ticket for doing 123 mph in 55 zone while riding a 30 horsepower motobike. Judge threw it out. Judge could do basic arithmetic.

 

[1911]

https://raleighpublicrecord.org/news/2016/03/23/ncdots-new-speeding-crackdown-overhyped/

 

[BigOgre]

This has been posted before but it seems like a fit here.

 

[wheatonFJR]

https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2016/03/25/ticket-56-mph-55-not-likely-nc/82247880/

 

[Blind Squirrel]

I suspect this is nothing more than a ploy to generate more revenue. They will most likely dismiss the ticket...but you will still have to pay the court's administrative fee. The cops are being forced to become tax collectors.

 

[Big Sky]

186,000 miles per second: it's not just a good idea; it's the law.

 

[luvtoride]

I suspect this is nothing more than a ploy to generate more revenue. They will most likely dismiss the ticket...but you will still have to pay the court's administrative fee. The cops are being forced to become tax collectors.

my point exactly.

 

[Auburn]

I do like these (most of the time).

The speed signs let me check when my radar detector goes off and then how close I get to the sign before it can detect my motorcycle and post the speed. It gives me an idea of how my bike will perform with police radar. My radar detector goes off at the same distance, car or bike, but on the bike I can get twice as close to the sign before the radar return signal is strong enough for the sign's radar to read. Well, except for the car I have now, it has almost the same stealth factor as the bike. My car is low and has a very rounded front profile. Unfortunately, the sign quite readily and willingly will post the speed of the car/truck way behind me until I get close.

There is always a but... The local town of Plaistow NH hides a cruiser with a radar gun out of sight from the road but where they can read the speed sign. A unlucky SOB wildly dangerous miscreant drives past the sign at some important amount over the posted speed limit and the sign posts his speed; the cop reads the sign and then shoots you with his radar gun for a positive kill. Your radar detector can't help you like this, even with arrows on the detector.

An unrealistic speed threshold like 1 mph doesn't change a thing. Any LEO that has a reason to want to stop you can pull you over anyway at 1 mph, or pull you over because your tire touched the yellow line or any other marginal violation. There are some states where the courts will charge you for contesting a ticket, under the pretense of paying the court costs. In this case the 1 mph could be misused. Massachusetts:

I got a traffic ticket and want to challenge it. What do I do? If the “criminal complaint application” or “arrest” box is checked, then you have been charged with a crime. Your case will go before a judge or magistrate as a criminal matter. If you are also charged with civil infractions, they will be covered during the criminal hearing. You cannot challenge them separately.

Send the citation and a $25 filing fee to the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) at the address listed on the back of the citation. Mail the citation within 20 days of the date you were cited. Pay the fee by check or money order.

Alan, I often speed up when I see those things.

What if you are doing triple digits 135? does it show the first 2 or last 2 digits?

most of those signs are programmed to just flash "slow" if you are >10 mph over the speed limit

 

[Bugnatr]

I do like these (most of the time).

The speed signs let me check when my radar detector goes off and then how close I get to the sign before it can detect my motorcycle and post the speed. It gives me an idea of how my bike will perform with police radar. My radar detector goes off at the same distance, car or bike, but on the bike I can get twice as close to the sign before the radar return signal is strong enough for the sign's radar to read. Well, except for the car I have now, it has almost the same stealth factor as the bike. My car is low and has a very rounded front profile. Unfortunately, the sign quite readily and willingly will post the speed of the car/truck way behind me until I get close.

There is always a but... The local town of Plaistow NH hides a cruiser with a radar gun out of sight from the road but where they can read the speed sign. A unlucky SOB wildly dangerous miscreant drives past the sign at some important amount over the posted speed limit and the sign posts his speed; the cop reads the sign and then shoots you with his radar gun for a positive kill. Your radar detector can't help you like this, even with arrows on the detector.

An unrealistic speed threshold like 1 mph doesn't change a thing. Any LEO that has a reason to want to stop you can pull you over anyway at 1 mph, or pull you over because your tire touched the yellow line or any other marginal violation. There are some states where the courts will charge you for contesting a ticket, under the pretense of paying the court costs. In this case the 1 mph could be misused. Massachusetts:

I got a traffic ticket and want to challenge it. What do I do? If the “criminal complaint application” or “arrest” box is checked, then you have been charged with a crime. Your case will go before a judge or magistrate as a criminal matter. If you are also charged with civil infractions, they will be covered during the criminal hearing. You cannot challenge them separately.

Send the citation and a $25 filing fee to the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) at the address listed on the back of the citation. Mail the citation within 20 days of the date you were cited. Pay the fee by check or money order.

Alan, I often speed up when I see those things.

What if you are doing triple digits 135? does it show the first 2 or last 2 digits?

most of those signs are programmed to just flash "slow" if you are >10 mph over the speed limit

I know why you know why the signs do that