They do it different in Texas: Speed cameras banned statewide

[jetsetter]

Finally, someone's fighting back against the fleecing of the general populace. Famous for liking things big, Texas lawmakers have laid the smackdown on red light and speed cameras in a large manner. HB.922 states "A municipality may not implement or operate an automated traffic control system with respect to a highway under its jurisdiction," which means that cameras, automated radar or laser, or anything else designed to snag an image of a car, driver, or license plate and record its speed is now forbidden. The even larger racket of red-light cameras have had the brakes applied by HB.1052, which requires giving motorists notice of the devices at least 100 feet out.

These bills have passed through the legislature and are awaiting Governor Rick Perry's inscription. If the measures do make it into law, we hope that other states follow suit. Ticketing egregious speeders and actual red-light scofflaws is one thing, but the systems have been calibrated in a cynical manner to generate loads of revenue (and kickbacks) for the companies that sell and administrate the systems for municipalities. Rather than keeping people safe, random ticketing amounts to a tax, and that really sticks in our craw. We're pleased beyond words that Texas has taken up the motorists' cause, and we hope that the new legislation can stand as a precedent.

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/05/23/t...ned-statewide/

[BlaRo]

AMERICA, FUCK YEAH!
No, really, that's awesome.

[B33R]

that sounds nice...never going to happen here...too bad!

[epp_b]

Yeeehaw!

(I thought that was only appropriate )

[Z102]

that sounds nice...never going to happen here...too bad!

x2

[BerserkerCatSplat]

Awesome!

[nomix]

Think they're going too far. They do reduce speed, the question is if they're just a simple solution to a problem that's more complicated than just speed, though.

My point is. Speed cameras around schools. That is a good idea. On a nice stretch of motorway, well, not so sure. Wait, I didn't mean that. On nice stretches of motorway, speed cameras are bullshit. I support the idea of the law, but not all the effects.

Remove the cameras from motorways, and cement them outside schools.

Now, all you're lacking is a law forbidding DRM systems.

[ESPNSTI]

I wish there was a machine that could detect idiot drivers.

[No Boss]

I asked this in the Random Thoughts thread, but much like everything in that thread, it got looked over. Anyway:

Do they have speed cameras in France?

[IVIaster]

hmm...dont know...ahemm...I guess...I believe...oh what the heck: Americans...

[thedguy]

Remove the cameras from motorways, and cement them outside schools.

This I can agree with. I also like the idea of red light cameras. There is a HUGE problem with people running red lights here. Thats a far bigger safety hazard than someone doing 10mph over on a 40 mile stretch of road that has 15 people living on it.

I do like the idea of the sign for the red light cameras though. It helps prevent an accident (you see the sign and think, rather than have to think to check for a camera), rather than just make money off someone who happens to make it through without causing a serious accident.

[Hidden_Hunter]

I wish there was a machine that could detect idiot drivers.

3 series

[Scott]

KOREa is quite good about both cameras and signs for them. They have cameras all over the place, but no red light cameras that I have seen. They are nazi's about regulating speed on the freeway though, but everyone just speeds between the cameras, so the hard braking gets to be quite dangerous in heavy traffic.

[American TG Man]

AMERICA RULES ALL! (in the speed-camera aspect)

Even better: Red light and school-zone speed cameras, and a pile of burning freeway speed cameras.

[cl191]

Sure they got rid of the speed cameras, but wait until you drive through their state, there are speed traps everywhere and they LOVE to target out of staters. 3 of my friends and myself all got tickets before just for going merely less than 5 miles over the speed limit. Usually in America, you are allowed to appeal the ticket in count or if you choose not to contest with it, you can pay a small fine and take "traffic school" which will keep the record away from the insurance companies. But of course since we all live hundreds or even thousands of miles away from it, it makes no sense to go to the count, then we thought we could do the 2nd option, but no...the 2nd option is only available to people that lives in Texas! What's left to us is to pay a much bigger fine couple hundred bucks if we don't want the ticket on our records. Every time I go to Texas, I see Texans driving like manics everywhere and on their welcome sign on the border, it says "Drive safely, the Texas way", what a joke.

[thedguy]

You can appeal the tickets through the mail.

RX7club.com has a member who did this when a cop tried to claim he sped through a street that was impossible to exceed the speed limit due to various conditions.

[martineb72]

There aren't any speed cameras here(Texas) right now anyways. Simply because the courts wouldn't accept it as evidence that that person was the one that was driving. They do have red light cameras, but the ticket is treated like a parking ticket. IE. it doesn't go on your driving record, and is half the cost.

Which sounds all nice and reasonable, until you find out about the actual cops here in Texas will lie under oath. But that is starting to back fire on them. I was in jury last fall, and when we went back to deliberate 5 other people there said they know of friends or family that the police lied on the stand about them. So the 6 of us just disregarded everything the police said, and since they didn't have much to go on except for what the police said they saw, we held out for an acquittal.

[un-dee]

Don't mess with Texas! Hoo-yah!

But I agree, way too many policemen waiting around the corner with a Big Gulp in their hands.
I was stopped once for going ~10 above the limit. Only got away because the cop didn't know how to fill in the number of my German drivers license into his form.

[madpsi]

3 series

SUVs and big lifted trucks could also be indicators...

I don't get it. We've got the whole GPS thing so dialed in that we know where a car is within a 3-foot radius. So essentially, we could detect any occurrence where a vehicle changes lanes without signaling, as well as if a vehicle swings across multiple lanes while turning.

GPS can also tell if someone is speeding regardless of where they are, and where any cameras might be. Why don't they just enforce the law that way?

I apologize for my rampant distaste for improper driving, but I live in a place where moronic driving is the norm. I have absolutely no tolerance for idiots who assume that traffic law is merely a suggestion.

[LeMans GTR]

3 series

= Izari