Photo Radar in Illinois - begins July 1st!!

[88_Eddie]

the cops are already out in full swing here. i cut through a neighborhood to get to work and there were 2 trying to hide at a 4 way stop. thankfully, i spotted them and came to a complete stop. i already have one stop sign violation from june of 2009, i cant get another ticket until june 2012.

 

[Captain Ledd]

*cracks knuckles and puts of flame suit just in case*

I don't see what the big deal is? Don't speed and pay attention.

It's like people are compelled to break the law and drive like idiots for whatever reason. It boggles my mind that they also feel like their entitled to do this, or that it's their right to. The laws we have now have been developed over 90 years of analizing accidents and accident deaths.

No speed camera is going to cause an accident, the accident is caused by some dimwit looking up in the air for the camera (hoping to not get caught instead of doing the right thing in the first place) and not paying attention to traffic. IE, a poor driver, lo and behold, they cause an accident. Just watch the freaking road and drive the speed limit and you won't have a problem.

It's not America, but some of Britans laws are already in place for years over there before they're in place here. As well as many other laws that are much more oppressive. Keep in mind, there is also far more vehicles on the road and MUCH more congestion. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1208

Traffic Deaths in the UK:

In fact in america traffic deaths are now lower than in the 1950's.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-04-12-traffic-deaths_N.htm
(the article talks about "zero traffic deaths" but that's an unattainable goal IMO)

Again with a massive increase in the amount of vehicles on the road. And cars were designed with almost no safety measures at all. Well some were, but even those systems were pretty questionable.

Driving is a privilege, not a right.

Maybe after you've lost someone due to someone else being stupid and not paying attention, or they didn't take into some silly little consideration like wearing a seat belt, they'd still be around, you might see things differently.

Go to a persons house where their husband/wife/son/daughter/best friend was killed because someone was in a hurry and advocate to them "not to slow down", that it "won't do anything" or "it doesn't matter". I bet you couldn't do it.

hmm I'm getting into a pretty good rant here. I suppose I'm done, for now.

 

[88_Eddie]

i work for an insurance company, that's all the motivation i need to obey traffic laws.

i could go on for days with disgusting stories about accidents i've heard about and seen pics of. some of them are just freak accidents, but i'd say 65% are due to people being idiots and not knowing how to drive.

a while back, we had one about a 16 year girl that wa texting while on a 2 lane road, drifted into the oppsite lane and hit a 35 year old man head on. bye-bye walking and running, his spine broke in 3 places and he's paralyzed from the waist down, the 16 year old walked away.

everyone here thinks it's their right to drive, when it's really a privilege. i think it should be a lot harder to get a license and maintain it and a lot easier and more expensive to loose it.

 

[dhinch279]

*cracks knuckles and puts of flame suit just in case*

I don't see what the big deal is? Don't speed and pay attention.

It's like people are compelled to break the law and drive like idiots for whatever reason. It boggles my mind that they also feel like their entitled to do this, or that it's their right to. The laws we have now have been developed over 90 years of analizing accidents and accident deaths.

No speed camera is going to cause an accident, the accident is caused by some dimwit looking up in the air for the camera (hoping to not get caught instead of doing the right thing in the first place) and not paying attention to traffic. IE, a poor driver, lo and behold, they cause an accident. Just watch the freaking road and drive the speed limit and you won't have a problem.

It's not America, but some of Britans laws are already in place for years over there before they're in place here. As well as many other laws that are much more oppressive. Keep in mind, there is also far more vehicles on the road and MUCH more congestion. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1208

Traffic Deaths in the UK:

In fact in america traffic deaths are now lower than in the 1950's.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-04-12-traffic-deaths_N.htm
(the article talks about "zero traffic deaths" but that's an unattainable goal IMO)

Again with a massive increase in the amount of vehicles on the road. And cars were designed with almost no safety measures at all. Well some were, but even those systems were pretty questionable.

Driving is a privilege, not a right.

Maybe after you've lost someone due to someone else being stupid and not paying attention, or they didn't take into some silly little consideration like wearing a seat belt, they'd still be around, you might see things differently.

Go to a persons house where their husband/wife/son/daughter/best friend was killed because someone was in a hurry and advocate to them "not to slow down", that it "won't do anything" or "it doesn't matter". I bet you couldn't do it.

hmm I'm getting into a pretty good rant here. I suppose I'm done, for now.

No flame suit required. I do agree with you that the causes of accidents are definately the drivers (generally speaking). I will say that it is hard to compare statistics from the 50's to now when there are many variables. Such as safer cars, speed limits, etc. My thinking on the speed cameras is to try them out and see if they help or hurt (I know I try to pay more attention to my speed while going through those areas). I do think that the red light cameras actually increase accidents in most cases (not all). I have seen many times people slam on their brakes and stop on a yellow light so they don't get a ticket. Even though your entire car has to be 5(?) feet past the line when the light is red before it will snap your picture. In my opinion, it transfers the accident from the guy who runs the red light to the guy that gets rear ended for stopping on a yellow light. But of course, all of this is debatable.

 

[strvger]

there are two things that could put young adults with more maturity behind the wheel of a vehicle:

1. you must be 18 years old before you can drive.

2. every young adult must give 2 years of military service, starting before they reach
their 25th birthday.

the first is obvious.
the second would, hopefully, help give everyone a basic starting point with the fundamentals of team work, work ethics, self reliance, etc. after those two years of service, the decisions they would make would be from a much broader perspective and awareness than many young adults get now.

just my $.02.

 

[Ranger Dave (B25)]

You are correct. Momentary lapse of judgement I guess, I live in Missouri (which has "points") but I drive through Illinois frequently. Illinois does have reciprocity with Missouri... meaning that depending on the offense, Illinois will notify Missouri of the offense and Missouri will then give you points on your license.

Nice thing about being a TN resident: no reciprocity with Hellinois. Thus, my solitary ticket from '08 (while I had my CDL) never showed up on my TN MVR.

That said, I STILL hate this !@#%ing state. Can't wait to leave it forever.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I do my best to drive within the limits of the law. Yes, I was young and stupid at one point in my life, but now I drive for a living (non-CDL but it's delivery driving) plus I work some construction.

But nailing you for being 1 mph over the limit is.... well... insanity.

In most of my trucks, the speedometer is relatively close to the actual speed I'm traveling (it took playing around with tire and gear changes to get there). My F-150, near as I can tell, is also relatively close except for one minor little fly in the ointment.... the speedometer needle will swing as much as +/- 8 mph after you exceed 45 mph. Of course, it doesn't stay at that point, but it swings widely and when it does settle down it's often twitching until it goes into another swing spasm. Some days it never goes to twitching and just bounces around, other days it's fairly steady, but it's usually moving. I've driven the truck enough to have a pretty good idea of what speed I'm traveling, but sometimes I have to rely on the fact that most police will typically give you a 5 mph leeway.

And even my trucks that the speedo is pretty much right on, they still can vary +/- 1 mph between actual speed and indicated speed.

So what is the answer? Stay well below the posted speed so they can ticket me for impeding the flow of traffic or the like?



Oh, and the comment someone had about raising the age to start driving? I don't see how that is really going to change much. PA used to allow drivers to start at 16 as soon as you pass your test. It wasn't long after I got my license that they started a 6 month waiting period from when you got your learners permit. You had to wait a minimum of 6 months, you had to log a certain number of hours driving, it had to be signed off on by a parent or legal guardian, etc. Now I think they've made it a year. Guess what? IMHO, there are even more idiot drivers on the road now than before they did that.

I think the problem really lies with both the people who train others to drive (IE, a kid learning how to drive from a parent who is an idiot driver is likely not going to learn much of anything good), and those who do the testing. Back when my dad got his license, PA State Troopers did the testing. Now it's usually some grumpy government employee giving the test. I failed my first drivers test, not because I did anything substantially wrong (the only thing that I failed to know was where the 4-way flashers were which wasn't enough to cause an automatic fail), but rather because the guy who was administering my test was a grumpy individual who had a reputation for failing male drivers and passing every female driver he got. My second time around I flubbed up the parallel parking part, but the guy I had then was far more understanding and gave me a second shot at it (I got in the spot but was not close enough to the curb on the first try - part of the problem was using a big old station wagon for the test which had terrible steering and was long as all get out).

I learned how to drive from my dad, which at times was enough to make me want to reach across the vehicle and strangle him, but it was worth it in the end - I can turn just about anything around on a dime and back up like a pro using just the mirrors on my doors. The first time I got sent out with an F-350 dump truck to move an equipment trailer I was sweating bullets - I needed to get turned around so I figured I'd cheat and run down the one street in the plan and around the cul-de-sac. Ha, ha, and ha, there was more vehicles parked in that cul-de-sac than you could shake a stick at, which forced me to back up and wiggle around - all without hitting anything. At that point I was doing a lot of thanking my dad for teaching me to drive.

I do think, however, that requiring young people to serve in the armed forces for 2-4 years would likely help things out though, the military does teach a lot of respect, both for yourself, your equipment, and others. Plus it teaches morals, and common sense - both of which are sadly lacking in our society today.

But I'll stop here for now....

/rant

 

[badmts]

I couldn't believe it! I went to SAFEWAY this evening and there was NO KOOL-AID They said YOU GUYS DRANK IT ALL !! Ben Franklin said ,"there a lies ,DAMN LIES and statictics!" . Insurance companies and the government -can you say VAST RIGHT-WING CONSPIRICY If speed is so bad why didn't the figures spike when MONTANA had their AUTOBAHN WET DREAM and got rid of daytime speed limits( From December 8, 1995 to May 28, 1999 Montana's daytime automobile speed limits were "reasonable and prudent", ) If seatbelts are so great why is anyone in NH alive.Now I love this country as much as anyone and I did 4 yrs active ARMY,10 in National Guard (La. & Wa.) but I also had a written contract -you can't just TRUST people with your life,money or FREEDOM -ASK A NATIVE AMERICAN ABOUT TRUSTING THE U.S. GOVERNMENT! People who trade freedom for safety get neither safety nor freedom.

 

[Tominator]

I do think, however, that requiring young people to serve in the armed forces for 2-4 years would likely help things out though, the military does teach a lot of respect, both for yourself, your equipment, and others. Plus it teaches morals, and common sense - both of which are sadly lacking in our society today.

I've lived around military bases most of my 56 years on this earth. The servicemen have no more respect for traffic laws than any other segment of the population.

Compulsory military service would be VERY expensive and I'm against it in any form for all kinds of reasons.

I drive a Class 8 in and around an airport every day....don't get me started on the way pilots drive.....

I'm for red light cameras and the requirements for photo vans in Illinois are very strict and give the motorists multiple warnings via signs, before the officer in the van can give a citation. There are only a few of these specially equipped vans in the whole state.

Slow down in construction zones!

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I've lived around military bases most of my 56 years on this earth. The servicemen have no more respect for traffic laws than any other segment of the population.

Compulsory military service would be VERY expensive and I'm against it in any form for all kinds of reasons.

I drive a Class 8 in and around an airport every day....don't get me started on the way pilots drive.....

I'm for red light cameras and the requirements for photo vans in Illinois are very strict and give the motorists multiple warnings via signs, before the officer in the van can give a citation. There are only a few of these specially equipped vans in the whole state.

Slow down in construction zones!

Our servicemen and women should have respect for the laws that make up this country, it's something that is supposed to be taught. When I went through ROTC, respect for everything around you was drummed in good.

And yet, there was still some people that I saw go through it all and have little or no respect for things. Why. Simple, you have to respect yourself first. The military training can only give you the tools, you have to use them to get a leg up on things. In other words, I think having to serve can HELP, but is not the end-all cure, that has to start at HOME where parents need to start acting like adults and not their child's "friend." But I'll save that whole rant for another thread.

As for very expensive and all those other unlisted reasons, would you care to explain how some other countries have done it with great success? Like Israel and (IIRC) Switzerland? (Now I realize that the Russians and Chinese have done that sort of thing as well with no real success but they also were corrupt communist countries at the time).

And as far as how pilots drive, well, they really kinda are a special breed... lol

I'm not saying that there shouldn't be a crack-down on bad driving. But setting up unmarked vans to nail anyone going 1 mph over the limit is crazy. The speedometers in most cars are simply NOT that accurate. Thus the only way you can ensure that you will NOT get a ticket is to slow down BELOW the posted limit when you see the signs (if they actually post the signs). Oh, wait, then they can also nail you for impeding the flow of traffic, driving at an unsafe speed, driving too fast for conditions (yep, you can get that even if you are well below the posted limit and there is NO argument to get out of it), or a number of other citations. Bottom line is that they will nail you for something if they need the extra ticket for the month.



As for me, I'm going to stay clear of Illinois.

 

[--weezl--]

i skipped a lot of posts, i've now been up like 20 hours... so i'm kinda half asleep, and it was a lot of reading...

I had one in Boulder last year, doing 45 in a 40mph work zone. Camera took my picture and all. It ended up costing me about $65 and no points. I almost went back the next week after the ticket showed up in the mail with a can of flat black epoxy paint....... Still want to go paint over the lense when I see one, that or take a tire iron to it.

The dang ones in Dever do it in Vans with people in it. They park on Medians, peoples front yards, sidewalks or wherever it pleases their sorry ass. I hate them with a passion. Almost as bad as all the red light cameras we have now.

something i've wanted to do here (we've had photoradar in stationary vehicles for about 15 years) is "break down" right in front of the van for about an hour, then miraculously fix it and drive away!

the provincial government just approved the use of speed on green cameras, which essentially allows municipal governments to activate features on all of the redlight cameras to catch you speeding on a green light, where as before it was red light only, and i think you could get a speeding ticket if the light was red... these are fine only offenses though, no points here...

the nice thing about ours is they always use dodge caravans (until a few months ago, they got a brand new f-150) and the stationary (speed on green) cameras MUST be marked with a sign saying laws photo enforced, which makes it quite obvious... i've also only noticed one intersection that has a "hidden" camera, and it's not really hidden, there just happens to be a bush blocking it from people who it would catch... i know where that intersection is, and i watch for the towers at every light now, along with parked vehicles on the side of the road...

they also never used to use 4 way flashers, which you have to do by law (i got towed for having a flat and not having my flashers on) so you drive down the highway, and when you see a van or truck parked with no flashers, slow down, or make sure you're next to someone else... if there's 2 people in the picture, you can dispute it by saying "that guy was passing me" and they can't prove you wrong

 

[RangerMtnHigh]

^Now that is cool.^

2nd that haha

 

[Ranger Dave (B25)]

I couldn't believe it! I went to SAFEWAY this evening and there was NO KOOL-AID They said YOU GUYS DRANK IT ALL !! Ben Franklin said ,"there a lies ,DAMN LIES and statictics!" . Insurance companies and the government -can you say VAST RIGHT-WING CONSPIRICY If speed is so bad why didn't the figures spike when MONTANA had their AUTOBAHN WET DREAM and got rid of daytime speed limits( From December 8, 1995 to May 28, 1999 Montana's daytime automobile speed limits were "reasonable and prudent", ) If seatbelts are so great why is anyone in NH alive.Now I love this country as much as anyone and I did 4 yrs active ARMY,10 in National Guard (La. & Wa.) but I also had a written contract -you can't just TRUST people with your life,money or FREEDOM -ASK A NATIVE AMERICAN ABOUT TRUSTING THE U.S. GOVERNMENT! People who trade freedom for safety get neither safety nor freedom.

Forget your meds last night?

 

[Ranger Dave (B25)]

As for very expensive and all those other unlisted reasons, would you care to explain how some other countries have done it with great success? Like Israel and (IIRC) Switzerland?

Like the United States until the '70s. Mandatory 2-year hitch. Any of you old guys like me notice how things went to hell around here after it ended?

IMAO, they should re-institute the draft. Immediately. As in 30 years ago. And jail anyone caught dodging it for the same length of time as their enlistment would be - plus one year - in a military prison (Ft. Leavenworth, anyone?).

 

[Explorin94]

This threat has been circling this state for years. I have yet to see any type of photo enforcement come to any road or construction area. The Troopers sit at the work sites and run the radar to keep the zones safe. The state doesn'r even pay them the construction company does. This is all media hype to scare the public into thinking that Photo Enforcement really does exist and to make them slow down. I have seen pull behing trailer set up as units the tell you the speed that you are traveling, even one that flashes a bright light at you if you are doing so many over the limit. I am not saying that it does not exist as there may be a few throughout the state. The state can't even afford to put Troopers on the road let alone pay the money they want for one of those machines. There are Troopers driving cars with well ove 150,000 miles on them and they are pillaging parts from the newer wrecked and out of service cars to fix the jalopies they have now. Hell they can't even pay the new Troopers starting out......the state has them go through 32 weeks of training to give them pink slips at graduation. Then there excuse is the budget isn't right and we need to cut you. If they would start taking pictures and actually sending tickets in the mail to the speeders the state would go even farther in debt from postage fees. I have lived in this state for 40 years and have been in Law Enforcement for 14 of them. So believe what you want but the only places in Illinois that any type of "Photo Enforcement" may exist is Chitcago or St. Louis possibly Carbondale.