speed traps

[ramadoss]

Enlighten me HiTech to the Kalifornia definition of a speed trap.

I suspect this is along the lines of taking down speed limit signs ??

I was curious so I looked it up. It's long, here is a link.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/di...le=40800-40808

[HiTech]

Here ya go. Straight from the Vehicle Code.

40801. No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in
arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person
for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be
used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the
purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code.

40802. (a) A "speed trap" is either of the following:
(1) A particular section of a highway measured as to distance and
with boundaries marked, designated, or otherwise determined in order
that the speed of a vehicle may be calculated by securing the time it
takes the vehicle to travel the known distance.
(2) A particular section of a highway with a prima facie speed
limit that is provided by this code or by local ordinance under
subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section
22352, or established under Section 22354, 22357, 22358, or 22358.3,
if that prima facie speed limit is not justified by an engineering
and traffic survey conducted within five years prior to the date of
the alleged violation, and enforcement of the speed limit involves
the use of radar or any other electronic device that measures the
speed of moving objects. This paragraph does not apply to a local
street, road, or school zone.

[phuzz01]

Am I reading that wrong, or is it saying that VASCAR is illegal in California? WTF? :confused:

[HiTech]

Am I reading that wrong, or is it saying that VASCAR is illegal in California? WTF? :confused:

Not quite. What all that legaleze means is that if you use radar or laser on a road the set speed limit has to be reasonable. If the speed limit (that is set by traffic engineers) is 45 mph then 85% of the cars traveling on that road must drive 45.

It is certified by the traffic engineers who sit in unmarked cars and record passing car speed with radar. If only 80% travel at 45 and the rest drive faster then the road is considered a speed trap.

[Samuel]

My interpretation is that yes, VASCAR (calculating velocity from measuring the time it takes a vehicle to cover a given distance) IS considered a "speed trap".

Radar (calculating velocity from change in wave frequency) and Lidar (calculating velocity from change in "ping time") are ok use (all else being equal).

[phuzz01]

Not quite. What all that legaleze means is that if you use radar or laser on a road the set speed limit has to be reasonable.

That was the SECOND part of the stuff you posted. The first part sounded exactly like VASCAR (marking set distance and timing the vehicle over that distance to get average speed).

[Solego]

Must read carefully, both parts must be satisfied in order for it to be a "speed trap." SO putting a 10mph speed sign on the interstate would be considered unreasonable.

[P01IC3M4N]

in texas, the law is a little shady. police cars are not exempt from the lighting requirement laws at night. if the car is visible from 1,000 feet, then lights are not necessary, but if it is not, then the parking lamps must be on.

the way i get around this is to pull completely off the roadway. i have several spots that are worn down so i can essentially pull right up against the shoulder, but still be off the road. or i could park under a street light and sit on the shoulder.

at night, it's not uncommon for me to just pull over to the shoulder and sit there with the lights on and my foot on the brake thus illuminating the brake lights. people see it's not a crown vic so they maintain their speed and i tear the place up.

[phuzz01]

Must read carefully, both parts must be satisfied in order for it to be a "speed trap." SO putting a 10mph speed sign on the interstate would be considered unreasonable.

I DID read carefully. It says "A "speed trap" is EITHER of the following." Then it lists two scenarios, only one of which has to be there for it to be a speed trap. The second scenario was the 10mph speed sign on the interstate thing. The FIRST one (40802, (a) part (1)) says that using a device to calculate distance over time (which is VASCAR) is a speedtrap.

[CashCrop]

The DPS loves to pull over to the shoulder and turn on their hazard/warning lights, to make the vehicle appear as a disabled vehicle... Do that on I-10 all day and night. Jefferson County SO does it with their unmarked SUVs also.

Oddly enough, the HPD and HCSO stay off of major Houston freeways, except in isolated cases (major interchanges, construction zones, and accidents) The DPS seem to stay North of BW-8, Sam Houston Tollway (at Greenspoint) and South of the S-610, S-I45 interchange (on the way to Galveston)

Wish I knew why. I-45 might as well be NASCAR at off peak hours. And every idiot in a rice rocket wants to race because I have a relatively speedy car.

[Lawson]

I dont believe in Washington State we have any speed trap laws or regulations. Well there are none that I know of. The State Patrol will be seen sitting in medians, off the side of the roads, no lights period, around corners, hiding in the brush. [You can tell where a State Patrol Speed Enforcement location is because there will be trees and shrubs planted in the median of an interstate for them to hide in.] They sit on top of overpasses behind the attached exit signs then speed down the onramp to catch violators. They park in private lots, public parking lots, Use Brand New Undercover Impalas in Auto Dealership Lots. They will sometimes pretend to be disabled motorists, they use an Aircraft with a Speed Measuring Device, They have "wolfpacks" in which trooper cars will be more than a few miles down the road and a trooper will be running LIDAR while standing on the side of the road and call in violating vehicles over the radio. They also hide amongst Road Construction and have an Undercover Trooper Operate a RADAR or LIDAR gun as if it were a Survey Device.

They also have a bunch of cars you would never suspect to be police units. I have seen an Older Ford Truck Conducting a Traffic Stop with a uniformed trooper contacting the passenger side. I have seen SP Hummers, Tahoes, CVs, Impalas, Corvettes, Camaros, Intrepids, Pickups, Explorers, Hondas, Subaru WRXs, all sorts of stuff.

I would think if our state had any laws against speed traps, these guys have broken every one :D

[Solego]

Pretty much every state but Florida has stupid laws. I can drive 100mph and if someone BEHIND me paces ME I can pull them over and give them a ticket. In fact, I can go the speed limit and then slowly speed up until they hit my 15mph limit ( I don't pull unless traveling 15 or greater over the posted limit) and then pull them. I don't have to be weaing green socks or my hat or have my parking lights on or make an announcement over national radio that I'm doing traffic. In fact, I don't even have to be in uniform to issue a ticket. In fact, I can call a buddy to do a traffic stop for me, then pull up behind him in my grocery getter and write the ticket myself as long as I witnessed the violation. I also take my ticket book to traffic court so when our local traffic hearing officer feels she's being insulted by a citizen's stupidity, she can order me to write the person a ticket for the original offense if I cut them a break in the first place. Florida's ONLY saving grace is that it is ruled by common sense...for the most part.

[mcsap]

VASCAR is the ONLY speed enforcement device that automatically gives the motorist ( read speeder ) a break on their speed becuse the recorded speed is an AVERAGE as opposed to radar etc.

And they consider this some type of a trap ? There goes the left coast.