Conflict of Interest 3176

Dave

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Wrong on almost all counts, Dave. I agree that posted limits have little effect on the speed people drive. But the rest of your argument is both too specific and not specific enough. If the limit is 5 mph and it's raised to 35 mph the 85th percentile will drive less than 5 mph faster?! I try not to quote Madonna that much but, "Monkeys might fly out of my butt" too... but that's not the way I'd bet.

And here's the deal on revenue generation via traffic fines: If it was the motivation for profit no law enforcement agency would be strapped for cash or officers. There'd be a speed trap around every corner and an aircraft in the air 24-7. The roadsides would be clogged with drivers being ticketed for not using turn signals.

The *facts* are- The feds have squeezed the states, the states have squeezed the cities and the cities are squeezing by. If traffic tickets were such cash cows every municipality would be raking it in like a Vegas casino! Or... is there a shortage of traffic violations in your town?

The very few towns with strict traffic enforcement quickly become notorious, have no shortage of offenses to cite and *still* operate on a shoestring. I see absolutely no evidence to support the complaint that speed limits are set or offenders are cited to generate revenue. The complaint is completely baseless since all you have to do is operate somewhere near the limit to avoid contribution. -----

- gpsman