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this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2026
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My state recently installed speed cameras in work zones. Some areas make sense but in one area they had something like 60k fines issues which amounted to millions of dollars. 2 things were discovered: the cameras were extremely sensitive, some drivers recorded their speeds at 43mph but were fined for 46mph. Then most of the money went to a company in NJ, our state (WA) got like 15% of the loot.
Seems most of these speed cameras are predatory and scams.
Scameras
What they do here (not the USA obviously) is subtract the uncertainty of the speed camera from your measured velocity. So for example, the camera might record you driving at 80 km/h, but you would be fined as if you were driving 75 km/h (precise numbers may differ).
The odometer of cars is (at least here) actually calibrated upward. So it would show (for example) 120 km/h when you're actually driving 115 km/h.
There's a trick that not many people seem to know about that you can do to avoid speeding tickets. Drive at 40 mph or less.
The limit was 45... So no, grandma we will not drive at 40.
That's understandable. If you drove at or slightly under the speed limit you might actually burst into flames or your dick might fall off or something. It's not worth it. Keep on speeding and getting them tickets and moaning about it like a spoilt kid.
Drive 40 and the camera will clock you at 43 and you get fined.
I won't be in favor of traffic camera enforcement until it's shown that they are safe, reliable, and trustworthy. Red light cameras often have unsafe light timing, for example. A speed camera should have a margin of error. And speed should be controlled by road design, not signage.
And most importantly, profits should go to municipality, not in private hands.
Speed cameras have repeatedly been shown to improve safety . ~20% reduction in injuries and deaths is worth a few people getting a fine that they shouldn't have.
Almost all jurisdictions have this and will not ticket you for going 43 in a 40
This would be good in theory, in practice though this is very expensive compared to cameras. So you're asking those who drive safely and those who don't drive at all to pay more in taxes to try and slow down dangerous drivers who can't be asked to check their speedometer.
You should really read the context a lot more closely next time.
What context am I missing? The person I replied to said they'd support them if they were proven to improve safety, I gave a source proving they increase safety.
The only thing I can think of is the guy further up in the thread saying they were ticketing for going 46 when they were 43, which is still over the limit of 40, everyone down voting the guy who mentioned that, and the guy I responded to making up a scenario where they get a ticket for getting clocked at 43 when they were going 40 when that will not happen, almost all jurisdictions will not give you a ticket for going less then 5 over on a speeding camera.
If the camera clocks you at 43 then it's faulty and you can appeal.
That's a significant amount of time and effort I shouldn't have to expend, especially if it involves actually going to traffic court.
Does it happen to you often?
Do you remember exactly what your speedometer said 12 days, 6 hours, 14 minutes, and 44 seconds ago? How do you plan to fight the ticket, tell them it's too close to call and hope they agree?
What the fuck are you on about? You appeal tickets based on whether the camera recorded your speed correctly and if it had been calibrated properly. If it clocked you as doing 43 when you were doing 40 then one or the other is the case. Otherwise you were speeding and you deserve a ticket.
Your speedometer hits exactly the speed limit and never ticks over that, does it? Never? Never to pass, never with a little latent throttle when cresting a hill, never when a truck's draft eases your drag, never when a speed limit gets reduced? Just a peachy perfect driver, eh? I assume you've actually calibrated your speedometer as well and aren't trusting one of the most well-known inaccurate devices in the world, right?
You have no proof of your exact speed. "Cross my heart, judge, I have never exceeded the speed limit in my life" doesn't work. There's a reason speed readers must be calibrated and a tolerance zone must be excluded. You clearly don't know the first thing about metrology.
By law, the speedometer error over 30 MPH has to be within -10% and +0%, so if it says I'm doing the speed limit, I'm doing between 36 and 40 MPH. In the UK speed cameras are set to go off at +10% over the speed limit, so there's plenty of room for the needle temporarily going over a bit. Speed cameras have to be regularly calibrated to be able to be used to prosecute people. They are going to be more accurate than your speedometer but your speedometer should never be telling you you are not going as fast as you are. If it does then your car is defective and you should get it fixed. The camera should never go off if you are driving within +10% of the speed limit. It's simply not a problem for people who drive within the speed limit in a roadworthy car.
I'm not a perfect driver and have been ticketed for speeding. I deserved it because I was speeding, and I knew I was speeding. I didn't make out like I was the victim of some horrible injustice and then bitch and moan about it like a spoiled brat.
Wait so now 43 is OK because it's within +10% of 40? You said being fined for 43 is the cad eof either actual speeding or a faulty camera. You did not include the part of "per my local regulation's requirement of not issuing tickets until 10% over" before. Still, you said the alternate is actually speeding to which again, I ask, how do you think you'll prove you remember not going 3mph faster than the posted limit at any point 12 days ago
No it's not OK. The +10% thing is not a requirement to be prosecuted for speeding. 43 in a 40 zone is speeding. It's not a difficult concept.
Speed cameras (and speed traps generally) are usually set up to catch cars that are just passing through town, not the locals. So fighting the fine could mean coming back from thousands of miles away. That's why I let the sheriff escort me to an atm and handed over $300 in cash on my way home from college. To be fair I was speeding, and in a red car. Very young and stupid I was. Now I'm old enough to warn my kids to at least drive a stealthy color
It's difficult to feel much sympathy when you were actually speeding. It's literally illegal and dangerous and what the cameras are there to catch. Since I got older and stopped driving like a twat, I haven't got any speeding tickets. I totally deserved the ones I got when I was younger because is was driving like a twat.
SHE'S A WITCH