WTF is wrong with the Republic of VA?

4r3s

As I understand it the only places speed cameras can currently exist in MD are in construction zones (which are always labeled with a huge sign saying they are using speed cameras) and school zones (which I've seen both labeled and not). These are places where you clearly shouldn't be speeding anyway. The magic number is 12mph too as previously stated, speed limit 55, your speed 67, ticket!

I honestly don't mind the speed cameras, what I do mind is that its a third party issuing the tickets. I see major issues in a system where a private company is authorized to issue traffic tickets. Tickets should only come from the appropriate district's police force.

shadoquad

From what I've heard, that holds true everywhere except in Montgomery County and Baltimore City. And I agree that those are places you shouldn't be speeding, although I'd argue that police presence would be more effective as a deterrent than a love letter however many weeks later.
I agree. This is more the issue for me as well. It's a cash grab that benefits a private enterprise through a sweetheart deal with the gov't. The police should be operating these cameras and the system should benefit directly.

eastwest2300

I agree with you brother, but let me tell you, speed cameras are NOT only in construction and school zones, they are everywhere. For example, Connecticut Ave, in chevy chase village. right before the round about coming into the district theres 2 just on that little stretch on both sides of the road. I see people get picked off all day, its kinda funny, I slow down below the 30mph zone, just so they definitely get the ticket, and I have no part of it.. hehe

PapoZalsa

What do you mean by a 3rd party? Rental cops?

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4r3s

Kind of but not really, they're contractors.

theres a lot of good info at this site Maryland Speed Cameras

Here is one bullet I pulled from the faqs

•The speed cameras are NOT operated by sworn police officers. Instead this is outsourced to a private company. For example, under Montgomery county's contract ACS receives a $16.25 per ticket commission from these cameras, despite the fact that this violates a provision of state law intended to forbid paying contractors based on the number of citations issued or paid. For a long time the county refused requests to release the full details of their contract with ACS to the public. Now almost all the other speed camera programs starting up in the state use similar arrangements, turning over almost total control of the cameras and the ticket program to contractors who get paid a cut of every ticket. Per ticket commissions could encourage the contractor to cheat in order to maximize the number of tickets rather than safety, operate inaccurate cameras, or create barriers to legitimate ticket challenges. Essentially the contractor which generates the evidence used in court cases gets paid only if the defendant is found guilty, a clear conflict of interest. Moreover, the fact that local governments have circumvented this part of the law simply to guarantee a revenue stream brings into question whether ANY limitations will be respected.

eastwest2300

Very nice information, sir.

superchargedg

VA....the Nazi state.

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Jessobear

Montgomery County is the worst place to drive on Earth. There are speed cameras EVERYWHERE. The worst one ever is on Connecticut Ave. This is a six lane wide road that is one of the only major roads heading into DC and they put a 25mph speed limit on it. Are you kidding me?

Here's a good article about it:

http://www.gazette.net/stories/06110...54_32355.shtml

There are a number of other terrible things about driving in Montgomery County. All the jobs with the NIH and other biotech companies along 270 attract lots of people from overseas. I'm guessing that many of these people didn't drive in their home countries, because they're just unbelievably bad.

In some sort of retarded effort to try to control all these terrible drivers (my take on it), they take control of traffic to the nth degree. Every intersection has a red left turn arrow regardless of your visibility of oncoming traffic. This arrow is green for roughly 10 seconds and is basically always red when you get there. Next, most of the streets have medians with limited places to turn left. For some unknown reason, when you finally come to a break in the median, there is a sign saying no left turn and no u-turn. WTF?

I've never found DC drivers to be really bad, just absurdly slow. None of them ever seem to be paying attention when the light goes green and God forbid you should come to a 4-way stop sign. Everybody just stops and then eventually starts trying to wave other cars through the intersection. Do they not teach people about the right of way in an intersection in driver's ed here?

Another thing that absolutely sets me off is when people refuse to pull forward into the intersection when waiting to turn left. They just sit there and ultimately just wait for the next green arrow. In IL, everyone pulls forward into the intersection. I feel like I'm the only person who does it here.

eastwest2300

Jessobear, I would have to agree with you sir.