Should you get a speeding ticket for going 10 km/h over the speed limit?

[DuffMan]

People who drive under the speed limit should pay huge fines.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

People who drive under the speed limit should pay huge fines.

I'm with Jeremy Clarkson on this one.

Minimum speed limit of 120 on highways. Police marksman on overpasses taking out the drivers that can't manage to keep it up. You'd never have traffic jams

[Acey]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

the existing posted speed limits, usually far, far below the engineered speed capabilities of the road.

People say this all the time, but it often doesn't apply to the major routes. Alberta seriously cranked up their engineering standards for roads in regards to merge distances, grades, and the allowed radius for curves. Anyone who has driven on the new southeast part of Stoney Trail would probably say it is Autobahn-quality or better, but in reality it only meets Alberta's 110 kph design standard (you'll have to ask AB Trans why their policy is to sign 10 below the standard, but 10 kph is not "far, far below"). Deerfoot Trail, for example, is nowhere near the current 100 kph design standard.

I can't say I'm opposed to these new extremely strict standards they have for engineering roads here.

[CaptainCrunch]

Its great to say we should raise the speed limit, but half of the idiot drivers out there can barely handle driving responsibly at the current speed limit.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

People who drive under the speed limit should pay huge fines.

So long as they stop calling it speed limit or maximum.

[WhiteTiger]

Originally Posted by Acey

People say this all the time,

I love how we have so many road engineers who know all this stuff around here. I've often wondered where they all come from.

[CaptainCrunch]

Should they probably not bother with a ticket, sure.

But I would put more faith in a posted speed limit instead of some silly story that police and technology are going to give you a 10% buffer.

I've never head a cop talk about a hard and fast rule about ignoring people within 10%, I've heard from cops that it depends on traffic conditions and volume of traffic and the way the driver is driving.

I agree with the low speed limit ticket though, especially on the deerfoot, there are way too many idiots going 20 or 30 kns an hour under the speed limit on good driving condition days in the middle lane.

[DuffMan]

I actually went through a radar gun on Friday, doing over 55 but less than 60, in a 50 zone and the guy didn't stop me. He gave me a dirty look as I went by. Actually I spotted him from a ways away, and slowed down to 50 as soon as I realized he was there.

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

I do have a very big problem with the existing posted speed limits, usually far, far below the engineered speed capabilities of the road.

But in general our speed limits are so fataing low on key roads it sure seems like they are purposely set at a pace that encourages speeding and subsequently the cash it would bring in.

I hate this argument. Guess what happens if you raise the speed limits? People, being jerks who think they know better, will just drive faster than the new higher speed limits. And that means the speeding gets that much more dangerous.

[19Yzerman19]

Absolute liability offences are inherently sketchy and we as a society permit them to exist in spite of them being unconstitutional because that decision not to intractably enforce the standards of the constitution and allow law enforcement a little bit of leeway allows for the better functioning of society.

See, when it comes to speeding, it's really society at large that's giving the 10% buffer to our law enforcement system, not the other way around!

[darklord700]

I asked for disclosure on my last photo radar ticket. On the cop's record, it said the radar was triggered at 63km/h on a 50km/h zone. I was unlucky as I was caught doing exactly 63km/h on that 50km/h zone. But that shed some light on how photo radar cops operate.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Acey

People say this all the time, but it often doesn't apply to the major routes. Alberta seriously cranked up their engineering standards for roads in regards to merge distances, grades, and the allowed radius for curves. Anyone who has driven on the new southeast part of Stoney Trail would probably say it is Autobahn-quality or better, but in reality it only meets Alberta's 110 kph design standard (you'll have to ask AB Trans why their policy is to sign 10 below the standard, but 10 kph is not "far, far below"). Deerfoot Trail, for example, is nowhere near the current 100 kph design standard.

I can't say I'm opposed to these new extremely strict standards they have for engineering roads here.

Are you not effectively saying the same thing as Mr. Coffee? "Extremely strict standards" implies that our roads are easily navigable at the posted speed limits or faster.

If the road is designed such that the worst driver in a million can drive at the speed limit and still not crash, then the logical implication is that 999,999 people out of a million can safely exceed the speed limit.

[Hot_Flatus]

Originally Posted by JonDuke

I usually follow the 10% rule.
10 over in a 100 is ok, but 60 in a 50 deserves a fine, imo.

Which sounds right but really makes zeros sense when you think about it. Many countries apply a zero tolerance rule across the board for speeding and it works. Safety is improved as there's less people attempting to pass cars that aren't moving slowly to begin with. A speed limit is posted for a reason so I'm not sure why people feel entitled to exceed it by a totally arbitrary amount.

Going a few km over is understandable but you should be paying more attention if you're going 10 over any limit.

[Hot_Flatus]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

I do have a very big problem with the existing posted speed limits, usually far, far below the engineered speed capabilities of the road. In Canada, it almost should be a 2 season limit where you have a summer max speed and a winter lower max speed to allow for the more slippery conditions.

But in general our speed limits are so fataing low on key roads it sure seems like they are purposely set at a pace that encourages speeding and subsequently the cash it would bring in.

The speed limits are set just as much for the road surface as the weather, traffic volume and competency of the average driver. You're talking about arriving a minute or two earlier at the most if you increase speed limits a few km/h on shorter trips.

[saillias]

Can I use this thread to talk about school zones?

There are too many in this city. 95% of the day, they are deserted. The only time I can justify slowing down to 30 km/h is when school is starting or getting out.

Thoughts?

[flambers]

Pretty sure, the Photo Radar, or Radar are not calibrated on a regular basis.

[flambers]

Originally Posted by saillias

Can I use this thread to talk about school zones?

There are too many in this city. 95% of the day, they are deserted. The only time I can justify slowing down to 30 km/h is when school is starting or getting out.

Thoughts?

Disagree, last thing I want to see is a vehicle going over 30kms around a school (during the week)

School times are always changing, there are breaks, school trips etc....

[habernac]

ah, to be in Europe where the speed limit on divided highways is 130-140. Our speed limits are based on the 1950s still, which is preposterous. In town, I think most roads are calculated correctly. But highways definitely deserve a bump up. We're not driving cars with fins anymore that handle like wagons on gravel roads.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by flambers

Pretty sure, the Photo Radar, or Radar are not calibrated on a regular basis.

I would imagine they are calibrated annually.

[strombad]

Originally Posted by fotze

Drove up to Cardel place a LOT this weekend. What is with the super slow limit on country hills boulevard. It feels so unnatural going 60 during long stretches there, especially down where Beddington crosses over. It has to be for photo radar trapping purposes. or have some morons gotten in wrecks there somehow?

As far as I know it's because that road just never changed despite the Beddington overpass.

Going west on Country Hills the speed jitters from 60 to 80 and back to 60 and then back to 80 with little indication as to why.

It's a terrible stretch.