watch your speed

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by Cerberus

One behavior I noticed and loved about Texas drivers, at least rural drivers, is that when they were driving on 2-lane county roads (at 50? 55 mph?) and making a right turn, they would pull over and drive the last bit on the shoulder so all the following cars wouldn't have to slow down while they executed that right turn. I was amazed at the thoughtfulness and politeness this showed.

I had never heard of Marfa, either, and was wondering where in the heck it was. Thanks for looking it up and letting us lazier folks know.

Vivian

Hi, I would do that in California, but in Oregon it's against the law to cross into the bicycle lane to make a right turn.

[SteveSueMac]

Originally Posted by Cerberus

One behavior I noticed and loved about Texas drivers, at least rural drivers, is that when they were driving on 2-lane county roads (at 50? 55 mph?) and making a right turn, they would pull over and drive the last bit on the shoulder so all the following cars wouldn't have to slow down while they executed that right turn. I was amazed at the thoughtfulness and politeness this showed.

That is a kind gesture for sure. Likely doable in a solo vehicle. A bit more difficult to do when towing as you need more space to execute your turns.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by Cerberus

One behavior I noticed and loved about Texas drivers, at least rural drivers, is that when they were driving on 2-lane county roads (at 50? 55 mph?) and making a right turn, they would pull over and drive the last bit on the shoulder so all the following cars wouldn't have to slow down while they executed that right turn. I was amazed at the thoughtfulness and politeness this showed.

I had never heard of Marfa, either, and was wondering where in the heck it was. Thanks for looking it up and letting us lazier folks know.

Vivian

Hate to rain on your parade but it’s not legal to drive to the right of the fog line. The shoulder frequently has debris that can cause tire damage also. Some shoulders are not quite wide enough, and people will try to pass and end up partly in the oncoming lane.

Similarly, some folks cross into the oncoming lane when making a left turn in an effort to be courteous. An oncoming car comes along and now everyone is screwed. Just follow the markings and rules. Don’t cause an accident trying to be courteous.

[rbs]

Originally Posted by rbs

been at the Tumble Inn for 1 hour and have witnesses the local constable stop 3 vehicles already, but we've seen that same thing in the past. If your plans include Marfa, watch your speed, they don't play here

If you plan on staying in Marfa most likely place is the Tumble Inn. They take reservations online, which we recommend, as it is small, has some construction workers here and is most generally full on weekends. The area where the speed is strictly enforced is when you are leaving town headed east, like back to the Tumble Inn where a person might start increasing his speed a little too soon. As far as the traffic in Marfa, nobody is in a hurry here. One more thing, not about speeding, but pizza. The Pizza Foundation, only opened on Fri thru Sun. We always have Marfa as a stop

[Landshark]

Originally Posted by ROBERTSUNRUS

Hi, I would do that in California, but in Oregon it's against the law to cross into the bicycle lane to make a right turn.

Ha! In rural Texas there were no bicycle lanes!

[Landshark]

Originally Posted by Countryboy59

Hate to rain on your parade but it’s not legal to drive to the right of the fog line. The shoulder frequently has debris that can cause tire damage also. Some shoulders are not quite wide enough, and people will try to pass and end up partly in the oncoming lane.

Similarly, some folks cross into the oncoming lane when making a left turn in an effort to be courteous. An oncoming car comes along and now everyone is screwed. Just follow the markings and rules. Don’t cause an accident trying to be courteous.

Anything one does on the road has to be in light of current conditions, therefore if passing on the left of a vehicle turning right means moving into the oncoming lane, partially or wholly, one has to make sure there is no oncoming traffic. Surely that is obvious. Any resulting accident would be the fault of the driver passing who didn't make sure the oncoming lane was clear, not the courteous driver who pulled over. One has to use a little common sense....

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by Cerberus

Anything one does on the road has to be in light of current conditions, therefore if passing on the left of a vehicle turning right means moving into the oncoming lane, partially or wholly, one has to make sure there is no oncoming traffic. Surely that is obvious. Any resulting accident would be the fault of the driver passing who didn't make sure the oncoming lane was clear, not the courteous driver who pulled over. One has to use a little common sense....

Maybe, but the cops will ticket you for an unsafe act whether or not it causes an accident. Another favorite of mine is folks who blow around a left turning car on the shoulder. Or use the center left turn lane as a “chicken” lane when turning left.

[SnowWanderer]

Originally Posted by out of sight

Government corruption. You'd think this was the third world. It's sad.

Let me see you repeat such a ridiculous comment after you have zipped a few babies and children in body bags after some irresponsible idiot decided speed limits did not apply to them.

I worked in EMS and responded to many fatal crashes, filling body bags with pieces, yes pieces, of peoples loved ones and placing them in morgue refrigerators. And you don't think speeders need to be stopped and cited? You think it is only a money making fraud? Outrageous!

I am a recently retired police officer and crime scene investigator... and yes, crashes are crime scenes. I have processed many fatal crashes where speed was a major factor and often the primary factor.

I suggest you spend some time in a hospital emergency room and witness the devastation caused by dangerous drivers; spend some time on an ambulance picking up the big pieces to put in body bags; watch the fire department hose body fluids into the ditch and accompany police officers when they make death notifications to next of kin. Maybe that will open your eyes.

Your comment was not only ignorant, it speaks of your obvious obliviousness to the dangers reckless drivers cause and the mission police officers have to keep drivers, including those which you appear to condone, safe while traveling the roads of America.

[Halford1]

Originally Posted by Cerberus

One behavior I noticed and loved about Texas drivers, at least rural drivers, is that when they were driving on 2-lane county roads (at 50? 55 mph?) and making a right turn, they would pull over and drive the last bit on the shoulder so all the following cars wouldn't have to slow down while they executed that right turn. I was amazed at the thoughtfulness and politeness this showed.

I had never heard of Marfa, either, and was wondering where in the heck it was. Thanks for looking it up and letting us lazier folks know.

Vivian

Southerners in NC, GA and AL tend to move off road while making right turn. NOT in California!

[out of sight]

Originally Posted by SnowWanderer

Let me see you repeat such a ridiculous comment after you have zipped a few babies and children in body bags after some irresponsible idiot decided speed limits did not apply to them.

I worked in EMS and responded to many fatal crashes, filling body bags with pieces, yes pieces, of peoples loved ones and placing them in morgue refrigerators. And you don't think speeders need to be stopped and cited? You think it is only a money making fraud? Outrageous!

I am a recently retired police officer and crime scene investigator... and yes, crashes are crime scenes. I have processed many fatal crashes where speed was a major factor and often the primary factor.

I suggest you spend some time in a hospital emergency room and witness the devastation caused by dangerous drivers; spend some time on an ambulance picking up the big pieces to put in body bags; watch the fire department hose body fluids into the ditch and accompany police officers when they make death notifications to next of kin. Maybe that will open your eyes.

Your comment was not only ignorant, it speaks of your obvious obliviousness to the dangers reckless drivers cause and the mission police officers have to keep drivers, including those which you appear to condone, safe while traveling the roads of America.

Speed traps are government corruption and you know it. It's not about safety. Its about the money.

[SnowWanderer]

Originally Posted by out of sight

Speed traps are government corruption and you know it. It's not about safety. Its about the money.

If it were about the money, officers would not be given discretion as to who receives a ticket or not... they would be required to ticket everyone.

I stopped a woman doing over 85 in a 70, bawling her eyes out, on the way to see her dying mother in a nursing home. We spoke for a few minutes and after composing herself she left without a ticket.

I stopped a man doing over 85 in a 70, who not only talked himself into a ticket, forty five minutes later he crossed the median on I-75... struck another vehicle head on and killed himself and the other driver. Wow... the government sure made money on that ticket.

If it were about the money, fines would be outrageously expensive. They fines that are set now are meant to be punitive. If you don't like giving the government money, then don't drive in a manner that attracts the attention of the guy who can ticket you. But if you do get stopped, remember this... some people can talk themselves into a ticket and some can talk themselves out of a ticket. I get the impression you are very good at the latter.

[SnowWanderer]

Originally Posted by out of sight

Speed traps are government corruption and you know it. It's not about safety. Its about the money.

One other comment.... whenever I stopped a sixteen or seventeen year old driver, and sometimes an eighteen year old driver, I gave them the option of receiving a ticket or writing me a three to five page research paper about the dangers of driving. I have hundreds of those research papers in a bankers box packed to the brim.

If it were not about safety and only about money, the court or my chiefs would never allow me to create that program.

By the way.... each driver's parent or guardian was required to call and speak with me. And, the teen would receive a ticket by mail if the paper was not turned in by the due date or I did not receive a phone call. I only wrote one ticket to a teen failing to complete the agreement.

[SteveSueMac]

Originally Posted by out of sight

Speed traps are government corruption and you know it. It's not about safety. Its about the money.

Obstinate and proud of it. What a combo.

Let’s put the OOS greatest hits package together:

Only tow with a vehicle at least 1.5x the weight of your trailer, never use WD or sway control, and screw speed limits - those are for losers and to line the pockets of corrupt government officials.

In other words - you’re just so special that no laws - neither of government nor physics - apply to you.

Got it.

[moosetags]

As a young man, I spent several years as a motorcycle officer on the City of Tallahassee Police Department. My job was selective traffic enforcement and accident investigation. We were expected to write 13 moving violations during each tour. The issuance of a citation was always at our discretion. Meeting the quota was easy enough as stupid drivers were as prevalent then as they are today.

Most tickets were issued based upon the attitude test. In some instances, I could make half my quota on a single traffic stop.

Brian

[SailorSam205]

Officer assigned to patrol the area where I live has asked permission to park at the base of our driveway on a busy two lane road just short of a traffic light. On the road in front of my house, rear ender accidents are almost a daily occurrence. Also, because the brilliant engineers responsible for traffic light setup have decided to have left turn green light go before the green for thru traffic, the bright drivers around here cross the double yellow and drive 150+ feet to get into the left turn slot. So far, I haven't witnessed a head on...

Lots of people believe traffic laws don't pertain to them.

[SnowWanderer]

Originally Posted by rmkrum

It’s not, on the face of it. Speed trap or the like might be a more real problem. It’s easy to drive at or slightly below the local posted speed limit if you pay attention.

I’ve driven through tiny towns in Louisiana and Alabama, for example, that had very sudden low speed limits. I was warned in advance and drove at appropriate speed. No big deal. Even the locals crawled through those places.

Funny thing.... we have a stretch of road where the speed limit changes from 55, to 45, to 35 and then to 25 mph... in less than two miles. People constantly call it a speed trap because "the limit changes so many times" before the residential area.

I will then point out that it was intentionally changed that way to help drivers to gradually reduce their speed from 55 mph to 25 mph before entering the residential zone. I also explained that that entire section of road used to just be a 55 mph zone which then suddenly changed to a 25 mph zone. At that time, drivers who flew by the 25 mph sign - while still travelling at 55 mph - called THAT a speed trap!

It is very simple to keep us out of your rear view mirror... comply with all traffic laws, rules and regulations! Stop means Stop; Yellow does not mean speed up to get through the light; Right Turn on Red after Stop means AFTER STOP; make your turns into the appropriate lane on multi lane roads; and the posted speed limit goes into effect AT the sign, etc!

If you choose not to religiously comply with the traffic laws, be sure to let your family and friends know what your favorite flower is, just in case.... they might need to know what to send to the hospital or funeral home.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by out of sight

Speed traps are government corruption and you know it. It's not about safety. Its about the money.

You’re right! The best solution is automated monitoring and ticketing, linked directly to your debit card. Your car could alert you to those unfair enforcement areas before you hit them. Your insurance might spike a bit but I’m sick of paying the freight for those who drive like crap.

[Rfriebele]

We always suspect corruption when there's a popular stretch of road that results in multiple tickets and police are always seen there, especially if it involves a " surprise" situation that catches the driver unaware. In all my travels though, never have I experienced a "shakedown" as I did in California. It wasn't a matter of being cited. A simple speeding ticket results in a ten dollar fine but gets accompanied by several hundreds of dollars in court fees and restitution. My ticket for being 8 mph over the limit set me back almost $800. And like Indiana did to me, they demand a bribe of another $100 to not report points to your state DMV. That sounds like extortion to me.

[SteveSueMac]

A couple years after just getting my license - and teenage freedom machine - I recall a ticket for a surprise situation...the surprise not being the posted speed limit - but the LEO parked beyond a hill so as I was bombing up it, I was well over the speed limit after the crest. There’s LEO with the radar gun out and pulling me over. Absolutely impossible to see him until coming over the top of the hill. And absolutely impossible to miss the posted speed limit signs well in advance. Bad choice on my part and no one to blame but myself.

I honestly congratulated him on a perfect spot while handing over my license & registration. I took my ticket, paid my fine and took the insurance hit.

These days I just leave earlier. Drive slower. Relax.

Happy camping!

[ROBERT CROSS]

I have been stopped twice for adulthood 'speeding'.
When asked..."how fast do you think you were going."
My reply both times was, 'stupidly'. 🥴
I never got a ticket.👍

Bob
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