US-75 stop for "speeding"

[Oldgringo]

What I should have clarified when I said my hubby was told he was pulled over for speeding is that he was supposedly going MUCH over the speed limit, not just 2 mph. I know 2 mph over is still speeding. Yikes!

And Oldgringo - I'm not saying traps are unfair, just that they are what they are. How else are they going to catch people breaking laws...dumb luck? :)

it's not about catching law breakers, it's about generating revenue.

Yes, but to do that they have to have a reason, yes? Hence the catching of speeders using traps. They don't leave it to chance to find law-breakers because they're looking for revenue.

This may sound stupid and out of synch with today's electronic gadgetry and busy schedules, etc., etc. but, has anyone given any thought to driving under the posted speed limit? It's my understanding that the posted speed limit is the maximum speed allowed not the mandatory rate of speed required by law.

Somebody help me...

[budroux2w]

What I should have clarified when I said my hubby was told he was pulled over for speeding is that he was supposedly going MUCH over the speed limit, not just 2 mph. I know 2 mph over is still speeding. Yikes!

And Oldgringo - I'm not saying traps are unfair, just that they are what they are. How else are they going to catch people breaking laws...dumb luck? :)

it's not about catching law breakers, it's about generating revenue.

Yes, but to do that they have to have a reason, yes? Hence the catching of speeders using traps. They don't leave it to chance to find law-breakers because they're looking for revenue.

This may sound stupid and out of synch with today's electronic gadgetry and busy schedules, etc., etc. but, has anyone given any thought to driving under the posted speed limit? It's my understanding that the posted speed limit is the maximum speed allowed not the mandatory rate of speed required by law.

Somebody help me...

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

[Keith B]

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

No, no, no, you misunderstood what they said. Driving under the posted limit will get your RAN over quicker here.

In all seriousness, that can be a sign of someone who may be under the influence and trying to drive overly cautious to keep from doing something that would look suspicious (like driving under the influence. LOL)

[randomoutburst]

Yes, hubby works nights but he drives down at around the time traffic going OUT of the city is building up, which typically means traffic going into the city is zilch. Same with his drive back home - very little traffic. Typically we can use cruise control at any time of day or night until we hit 380. Traffic after that is horrible because of all the construction at 121 and 75.

I typically drive right at the speed limit, maybe one or two over since I learned the Camry's spedometer is just a little off, and says I'm going faster than I am. Wish I had never figured that one out, it might have been better that way...

[Oldgringo]

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

No, no, no, you misunderstood what they said. Driving under the posted limit will get your RAN over quicker here.

In all seriousness, that can be a sign of someone who may be under the influence and trying to drive overly cautious to keep from doing something that would look suspicious (like driving under the influence. LOL)

{SIGH}

Could it not also be a sign of a concientious law abiding citizen who planned his/her activities/travels in such a manner and left the starting point/s well enough in advance so that recklessly endangering others by their inconsiderate and unlawful speeding is not necessary?

It's not that I have no use for inconsiderate, rude and/or reckless behavior, I'm just sayin'...

[TxRVer]

I use the cruise control and drive 5 under. I found the gas mileage on my Ram 2500 is MUCH better around 60. I always stay to the right and never drive in the left lanes. Driving 65 or 70 on the way to work isn't going to save me much time so I'd rather average 20 MPG with my hemi instead of 16.

[jagged97]

legal or not, i think flashing your lights to warn of police presence ahead is a bad idea. you just don't know who you could be helping. you could be warning a wanted child rapist, a murderer or a nun with a spastic colon. you just never know.

[Tamie]

Somebody help me...

Stay in the right lane. That will help everyone.

[srothstein]

This may sound stupid and out of synch with today's electronic gadgetry and busy schedules, etc., etc. but, has anyone given any thought to driving under the posted speed limit? It's my understanding that the posted speed limit is the maximum speed allowed not the mandatory rate of speed required by law.

Somebody help me...

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

Well, technically, Oldgringo, the posted limit is not the maximum allowed by law. The maximum is that speed which is reasonable and prudent. The posted limit is the maximum speed that is presumed by the courts to be safe and prudent. One of my suggestions on how to beat a speeding ticket is to not fight how fast you were going or the officer's qualifications to run radar (both are almost guaranteed losers). Instead argue that the speed you were going was both safe and prudent. Not a real high chance of winning, but better than denying the speed in most cases.

Other than that minor quibble, you are correct. The sign has the maximum allowable speed on it, not the minimum required. And just as a reminder to everyone, the road running parallel to IH-10 has black and white signs with a 90 on them. That is NOT the speed limit, but is the highway number. I have heard of some east Texans getting confused on that.



Budroux2w,

There actually are laws in Texas on minimum speed. The only clear cut time you can be written for it is on limited access highways where there is a posted minimum of 45 (usually). But, the other roads have no real minimum. The law does say you cannot be impeding traffic. So, if there is a car behind you wanting to go faster than you, you can be written a ticket if you are going to slow. More importantly, going too slow is one of the better signs of the driver being DWI. Someone who is not a regular drunk may not realize he is drunk, but the people who get drunk on a regular basis (not professionals, but drink more than average) will usually realize they are impaired and slow down to try to be careful. I used to have a chart of violations and the probability of the driver being drunk and I think going to slow was second or third. Improper use of lights (parking lights instead of headlights mostly) is even better, but slow speed is up there.

[gigag04]

slow speed is up there.

As is wide right turn

In all seriousness people who think tickets are for generating revenue obviously don't understand numbers. That pot of money gets so split up its not worth anyones time value of money for the ticket revenue. Behavior modification is a different story.

Me? I run traffic on nights because its a great way to catch burglars. I've hidden away a ton of traffic code in memory and can usually get a stop on a car if I want to.

[carlson1]

slow speed is up there.

As is wide right turn

In all seriousness people who think tickets are for generating revenue obviously don't understand numbers. That pot of money gets so split up its not worth anyones time value of money for the ticket revenue. Behavior modification is a different story.

Me? I run traffic on nights because its a great way to catch burglars. I've hidden away a ton of traffic code in memory and can usually get a stop on a car if I want to.

It used to be for generating revenue - what happened

[gigag04]

Cops starting making more and gov't programs got more expensive.

I guarnantee you that I do not pay for my salary with the tickets I write. In my city I'm too busy from keeping married couples from fighting and showing people how to raise their kids. We have have a traffic unit that writes alot - but they don't have "quotas." They work areas with lots of wrecks or complaints trying to get people to change their behavior. They also investigate fatality accidents and other major traffic issues.

[CompVest]

Cops starting making more and gov't programs got more expensive.

I guarnantee you that I do not pay for my salary with the tickets I write. In my city I'm too busy from keeping married couples from fighting and showing people how to raise their kids. We have have a traffic unit that writes alot - but they don't have "quotas." They work areas with lots of wrecks or complaints trying to get people to change their behavior. They also investigate fatality accidents and other major traffic issues.

I don't want to live in your city!

[Keith B]

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

No, no, no, you misunderstood what they said. Driving under the posted limit will get your RAN over quicker here.

In all seriousness, that can be a sign of someone who may be under the influence and trying to drive overly cautious to keep from doing something that would look suspicious (like driving under the influence. LOL)

{SIGH}

Could it not also be a sign of a concientious law abiding citizen who planned his/her activities/travels in such a manner and left the starting point/s well enough in advance so that recklessly endangering others by their inconsiderate and unlawful speeding is not necessary?

It's not that I have no use for inconsiderate, rude and/or reckless behavior, I'm just sayin'...

I think you need to look at the OP's statement of FAR below. Driving more than 10 MPH under the posted speed limit can be just as dangerous as over by 5-10 in 55+ MPH zones.

[Oldgringo]

I have heard that driving to far below the posted limit will get you pulled over quicker than going over.

No, no, no, you misunderstood what they said. Driving under the posted limit will get your RAN over quicker here.

In all seriousness, that can be a sign of someone who may be under the influence and trying to drive overly cautious to keep from doing something that would look suspicious (like driving under the influence. LOL)

{SIGH}

Could it not also be a sign of a concientious law abiding citizen who planned his/her activities/travels in such a manner and left the starting point/s well enough in advance so that recklessly endangering others by their inconsiderate and unlawful speeding is not necessary?

It's not that I have no use for inconsiderate, rude and/or reckless behavior, I'm just sayin'...

I think you need to look at the OP's statement of FAR below. Driving more than 10 MPH under the posted speed limit can be just as dangerous as over by 5-10 in 55+ MPH zones.

IIRC, the original topic was "speeding".

Granted, impeding traffic can be a bad thing and may even be unlawful just as "speeding" is unlawful.

,