fluster

Whilst out on the road today I was flashed(headlights flicked on and off quickly a couple of times) by a number of cars going the other way. I lifted my hand to thank them as they were letting me know that there was a speed camera ahead. I believe its actually "illegal" here but that doesn't stop people.

Here in Australia we have more speed cameras than cars at times it seems :-)

Anyway, I was just wondering if this warning system was used in other parts of the world?

mazagmot

yep, it sure is.

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Pip

Yeah. But mostly it's flashing with the breaklights to warn of road patrols ahead.

Lin

Should you not be driving under the speed limit anyway.

If there's one thing that gets placid little me going its peoples dislike of speed cameras , if they keep people from speeding and killing or maiming someone then they should put them up on every road in my mind.

And no I dont drive.

Pip

At least in my country the traffic police focus way too much on catching people who drive 20 km/h too fast on a dry straight highway and too little on catching drunk drivers or generally stupid drivers. Why? Because it's pretty easy to set up a speed cam and rake in the fines but it takes a lot of manpower to bust drunks.
There's one district infamous for their traffic police, they bust the most speeders in the country by keeping all their men on the one highway that gets a lot of traffic. In the meanwhile, you can drive like a monkey on crack in the rest of the district without fear of getting busted. That is what I don't like. At the same time truck drivers can drive off the international ferries drunk as skunks and not a cop in sight to stop them. In other countries they have regular stings by the ferries, not in Sweden.

thalakos315

never seen a speed camera here in oregon

cops still go out of their way to bust people for stupid violations though. i remember driving out of las vegas, i got pulled over for going 10miles over the speed limit. the reason i was going 10miles over the limit was because i was passing a semi, keep in mind this is on a near deserted stretch of highway with no bends or turns to speak of. got a fine of 160bucks that i couldn't show up in court to get reduced

its a known fact that if you have an out of state license plate, you can pretty much garantee to be pulled over for something stupid.

Manuel Hong

I do the light flash to warn drivers going the other way of a speed trap, and have been fortunate enough to be warned by them.

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Believe nothing, even if I tell it to you, unless it meets with your own good common sense and experience. - Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha)

Rlyss

I don't mean this as a 'Please search before you post', but you might want to take a look at these two threads, there was some great discussion in them I think. Mind you they're a few months old so I don't know if they should be bumped.

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthr...ighlight=speed

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthr...ighlight=speed

Take a look at them, they're a good read

shakran

Well perhaps this will give you food for thought.

First off they're not always accurate. One in Florida clocked a palm tree at 90mph.

Second (in the US), they violate your right to a fair trial - a fair trial involves you being able to question your accuser. Since speed cameras can't talk, it's pretty hard to do that.

So let's do a hypothetical. Let's be kinder to most speed cameras and say they are not inaccurate by +90mph as the one in fFlorida was. Let's say they're only inaccurate to +10mph. You get a 10mph over ticket when you were in fact driving the speed limit. Is that fair? No, but unless the judge understands the law (well. . understands it AND gives a damn about what it says) you're stuck paying a fine for a crime you did not commit. In many states you don't have automatic right to appeal in a traffic ticket, and many states laws assume the radar is always accurate unless you can prove it is not.

So speed trap cameras are pretty much a win-win for the cops. They don't have to sit around clocking cars, they don't have to have accurate speed readings, AND they get a constant stream of ticket money that they don't have to do any work for.

Stompy

Get a radar detector, then you won't have to worry bout em!

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RolandGilead

Here in germany there is a radio-station which actually gives out recent information where speed-cameras are positioned. They tried to sue them but it seems to be legal by now.

Gilda

I don't flash my lights to warn others, and don't care one way or the other if others flash me. Law enforcement devides like red light cameras and speed cameras exist to enforce the law. If you break the law and get caught, you've earned whatever penalty is imposed.

I typically will drive somewhere around speed limit +5 on highways, and the speed limit elsewhere. If I get a ticket for speeding, I will pay the fine without complaint because I know going into it that that is a risk you take when you disregard the law for whatever reason. Don't want to get a speeding ticket? Don't speed.

liquidlight

I live in Utah, USA, and the only thing that really bugs me is the amount of time spent enforcing these laws while all the others that could be taken care of, you know the ones that put people in mortal danger just by thinking about them, are mostly ignored. I wouldn't have such a problem but I know that officers here receive incentives and bonuses based on the number of fines that they issue! If I'm not mistaken there is even a minimum quota that each highway patrolman has to satisfy each month! It doesn't irk me that they enforce the speed limits, it irks me that the limits do NOT reflect the capabilities of the cars on the road, either in safety or performance, and they're not doing it to make the roads safer, they're doing it to make money for the government.

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Halfway to hell and picking up speed.

pattycakes

true story

today i was going to my girlfriends house from my friend holli's house, and i was driving down a road i know like the back of my hand and i was doing about 80 85


complete straight away, speedlimit 35 should be atleast 45. well i went flying past a cop. i guess he was feeling nice or eating a doughnut but when he ddnt pull out i punched it and did about 90 down the road afor about a mile then i slowed down to 70

scary at the thought of what the ticket would be and if i would lose my license

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Seanland

I take it you live in the states? Cause thats illegal here in Canada, not to own but to use its illegal

darkangel

I didn't know about the flashing lights to warn others.. Although I don't think anybody has ever done that to me. We have those cameras here (Canada). Sometimes you can see the guy standing behind it hidden in the bushes. Those are the more major ones, and of course general radar set up.. I've gotten a few speeding tickets in my day, so I've learned my lesson.

My brother had a radar detector, but it was stolen out of his vehicle years back. Figures.

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Grasshopper Green

I've noticed cameras in interesections here in Salt Lake, but I really don't know if they are for speeding purposes, catching people who run red lights, or for accurate accident information. One thing I've noticed here is that cops tend to hide in areas that have school crossings, and anyone caught speeding when the school lights are blinking are definitely going to get a ticket, and a well deserved one in my opinion. I agree with Gilda....don't speed if you don't want tickets.

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Formerly Medusa

tman17m

here in ohio we have a few speeding cameras, but they are all temporary setups, thus bery big and noticeable. we do have a lot of red light cameras however. these are more discretely mounted on top of the light poles. lately ive been speeding like crazy. i think its because i just got back from florida where everyone drives either really fast or really slow anyway. and its worse here because we have really slow speed limits in comparasion to all the other states ive passed through.

splck

Just because it's illegal in Ontario doesn't mean it's illegal in Canada . British Columbia has no laws restricting their use.

I'll flash the oncoming vehicles if I notice they are travelling too fast towards a speed trap. anything else is uncivilized

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nice line eh?

Demeter

Driving too fast kills people.

BoltedDown

Typically I observe the 5 over rule. That's 5mph over the speed limit in urban areas and highways with many curves. Active school zones are exempt, of course. 10 over is acceptable on the freeway or straight highways with light traffic. I do carry a radar detector but the more affluent areas are moving to laser (more accurate and expensive) which most 'fuzz busters' won't detect in time.

To answer your question, fluster, yes. I warn oncoming drivers of a speed trap with my headlights.

BTW, Demeter: What exactly is too fast anyway? 'People' can be killed by a car moving 10mph. That must be too fast then?

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-BoltedDown

darkangel

Is it true that you won't get a ticket if you're under 10 over the limit? I heard that somewhere... Like if the limit is 50, and you're going 51, that seems pretty harsh to give a ticket for.

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shakran

Define "too fast", then prove your statement against the statistical data from the autobahn (fewer deaths per mile than the US freeway system) where it's legal to go as fast as your car is capable of going.

raeanna74

I don't usually even think of flashing someone when I'm driving. I think I've only done it once or twice. Those where times when the Cop was so thoroughly hidden and the road nearly empty of other drivers. It just didn't seem fair for him to hide like that to catch some guy who wasn't a real danger to others. I'd much rather he be running around near the bars where people just love to drink a ton, hop in their car and go to the next club. When they can't keep the car straight on the road they're so much more of a danger to others. Really I sortof feel like it's your job to either keep the law or not get caught. If you get caught you asked for it.

Shakran - this arguement has been made before in threads discussing speed - not warning others as this one is intended. As for using the autobahn - there are a lot of other rules/laws for those driving there that reduce the risks of going that fast. If those laws were applied to any road, speed limit or not, the number of accidents would surely be less.

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omega2K4

People flash lights at each other to notify that there is a cop ahead, roadblock (they have these a lot around here to catch drunk drivers), or other things (wrecks, construction, bad traffic, etc) around here. But yeah, radar detectors are your best friend.

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slimcr

we do that here in Costa Rica.

Demeter

Safety link
The faster a vehicle is moving, the less time the driver has to react to a hazard, and for other road users to react to that vehicle. A speeding vehicle requires more time and distance to stop, and is harder to control. Speed is a factor in 30 per cent of fatal crashes and 12 per cent of all crashes.

As speed increases over 100 km/h, the fatality rate of vehicle occupants goes up exponentially. For example, the chances of being killed in a vehicle traveling at 120 km/h are four times higher than at 100 km/h. When a car crashes near 200 km/h the chances of survival are minimal.


Truth of the Autobahn
Yes, the Autobahn has no speed limit, but only in designated stretches - which are dwindling.
I'd say the average speed in light traffic is around 80mph, with most drivers in decent cars doing at least 100mph.


Yes, there are fewer deaths on the autobahn, but people there drive with more awareness, they have different driving habits than North Americans.
Its a simple fact, you have less reaction time when you drive faster.

darkangel

So I asked my dad about the flashing lights thing, and apparently he knew about it.. I live in small city so we don't have that much radar, so I guess I've just never experienced it first hand.

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"I'm gonna die when it's time for me to die.. so let me live my life the way I want to." - Jimi Hendrix

liquidlight

You go to all that trouble of actually looking up all that concrete evidence and then you have to go and muck it up with a statement that is so entirely subjective that it baffles me that you're attempting to use it to argue a point. Funny thing about statistics too. . . when you look at them from the right perspective you can make them say damn near anything.

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MSD

I warn other drivers about cops even if the cop is inside getting a cup of coffee. I view speeding tickets, seat belt violations, and the associated laws as illegitimate forms of revenue enhancement and unconstitutional litigation. A driver should be allowed to drive as fast as he can safely, and if that driving becomes unsafe, his license should be revoked until he can pass a new driving test with stricter requirements.

I don't believe in a nanny state, and I'm relieved every time I hear that someone who flashed their lights at oncoming traffic was acquitted thanks to free speech and expression.

Seanland

sry, i meant to say radar detectors, shit we flash each other here all the time

Demeter

True, there are statistics to prove anything. I'm not gonna attempt to argue...there's no changing peoples minds. I have my reasons for believing speeding is deadly.

shakran

Well I was responding to Demeter, who made a vague statement that in the end didn't say anything because "too fast" was not defined.

Plus, the warning others issue is a no brainer. The 1st amendment gives me the right to freedom of speech. If I choose to exercise my right by telling others there's a cop nearby, that's my perogative. If the cop doesn't like it, he should have found a better hiding place.

splck

I guess I should clarify too. I meant radar/lasar detectors are legal in BC. We can use them if we want.

I flashed someone last night as a matter of fact. Got a nice thank-you wave in return....makes me feel all warm and fuzzy

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nice line eh?

pocon1

Flashing is used to warn people of a road hazard ahead. Now if a line of cars is cruising along one after another and the first person sees a speed trap, what happens? He or she slams on the brakes creating a risk for anyone else following behind. Now you may say that you should not follow so close, but if you have never driven around Washington DC (My location) Los Angeles, or Dallas, then you have no idea what traffic really is. If you leave a one car length spot in front of you then someone will pull into it. Also, speed traps work most effectively as a visual deterrent. When you see someone pulled over on the road, or an officer on the road, you slow down. A camera will not curb you behavior until you get a ticket in the mail a few weeks later, so its ability to curb speeding has much less effectiveness. As far as radar detectors go, when people's detectors go off, they slow down. So putting radar out on a road can curb speeding for large sections of highway. So if the cops want to reduce speed, they need to be visible and actively run radar and speed traps. If the city council wants to generate revenue and not worry about law enforcement, then they run cameras.
As a side note, the past three tickets I have received over the past five years have all been at off times. I have gotten two tickets on Sunday, one at 9:30 the other at 11:30, both in the morning. The other was at 1:30 in the afternoon. At all three points there was a moderate amount of traffic on the roads, with all three areas being commercial business districts with no residential driveway access. If you want to catch a drunk or a guy with an outstanding warrant, run a speed trap at night. If you want a soccer mom or a mild person who mails in their ticket and pays their fine, run a speed trap during the day. On a Sunday. And yes, I will go to court for this latest one. If every single person showed up to court to contest every ticket, the judicial system would become absolutely gidlocked. I would like to see what happens.

kutulu

No offense, but that seems like the typical Libertarian response - don't do anything about a problem until after the problem has gotten out of hand. How are we supposed to make a judgement call on whether a person is a safe driver under your proposed system? Do we wait until the driver causes a wreck and then do somehting about him?

The_wall

If you ask me yes, we wait until the person causes a wreck to do something. Accidents happen all the time anyways and then we do something about it. I guess its a matter of how much of a nanny state you are willing ot live in. I would rather have my privacy and wait for something to happen, you would (I assume) rather not have that privacy and try and prevent that something from happening. I feel that the accident will happen whether or not speeding tickets are handed out, so why not just leave the people alone, and when something happens deal with it accordingly.

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kutulu

Sure, let's get rid of all speed limits. How about I come to your neighborhood and with a new Ferarri and test out the 0-60 times in front of your house while the kids play outside? When I kill a kid I can rightfully say that there is no law against me racing in residential streets and that 3 year old really should have looked both ways.

First of all, I do not support photo radar, I think it should be outlawed. However, just because I don't support photo radar does not mean I don't believe in having a system that is proactive on minimizing the damage instead of waiting for people to die.

Now, forgeting about photo radar, how is your privacy violated when a cop sees you driving too fast and pulls you over?

analog

I doubt there are more than one or two absolutely bat-shit-crazy people out there who want "no speed limits" in residential areas. MrSelfDestruct said safely. Obviously that means given road conditions, weather conditions, and AREA IN WHICH YOU ARE DRIVING.

Don't be unnecessarily crass, it'll get you much farther in life.

No, driving like an idiot kills people. Accidents kill people pretty much regardless of the speed they're going. We're not going to lower the speed limit to 40mph just so any and all accidents on the road are free of fatalities. Shit, even 40mph would kill someone in a head-on crash. I suppose we should all drive 25mph everywhere we go so the roads are safer? That's ridiculous.

"Driving too fast" doesn't kill people, poor judgement in drivers does. People need to be better trained at driving, and have a greater respect for their privilege (not right) to drive.

kutulu

safely is uncessesarily arbitrary. It does nothing to establish what constitutes 'safe' and 'unsafe' driving. If we are going to set up standards that define what is safe and unsafe, those laws need to be enforced. Otherwise the law is meaningless. How else to you enforce the traffic code without using cops to issue citations to unsafe drivers?