Traffic tickets are not for safety but revenue, right?

Question

If the safety nazis really wanted to stop speeding, tailgating, running red ligts, not stopping at stop signs, etc etc....wouldn't it be better to make the fine $1000 and not $100? Second offense would be minimum $2000 dollars and 30 days in jail mandatory. Would you be so inclined to speed then?

Answer 1

Of course the answer is : Both safety and revenue.
If it was for revenue only, they could just charge $1,000, even $2,000 to register any motor vehicle, and gain that money in that way, or charge $5 per gallon tax for gasoline. But for political reasons they are not going to do that.

The nasty little truth is that there are a lot of small town Barney Fifes out there in rural areas and counties who make a significant amount of revenue for their towns enforcing traffic rules and writing tickets. Lots of towns and counties make up their budget deficits in this way.

Imagine: a motorcycle cop, (whose principle job is traffic enforcement), may have to issue between $100,000 and $200,000 in tickets per year to pay for his salary and fringe benefits, plus the cost of his gear and his motorcycle's maintenance and depreciation. That is a heck of a lot of tickets. Serious accident investigation and felony arrests are only a small part of his job, as opposed to a cop in a marked cruiser.

I don't for a minute disparage the need for traffic police. The huge amount of drunk driving and reckless driving arrests are an indication that this type of enforcement is definitely needed. I would have no tolerance for repeat offenders.Since the idiots in Washington passed NAFTA, the number of unsafe trucks on the road, particularly those from Mexico, has increased enormously, and there is a serious need to cut down on the big-rig accidents on the highways.In my state, the Highway Patrol have patrols that spend most of their time checking truckers for overloads, unsafe vehicles, and unauthorized hazardous cargo problems.

None of us can not have had the experience when we have seen some idiot on the roads or highways going WAY too fast for conditions, or running lights and almost causing an accident. So, if they have to teach repeat offenders that "crime does not pay" I guess that is what will have to happen. But a lot of ordinary guys and gals who work for a living get hit with the extra unexpected costs of a traffic ticket, PLUS an increase in their auto insurance premiums.

I also have no tolerance for the HUGE number of illegal aliens who have not only no driver's license, but also no registration for the vehicle, and no liability insurance. If they have an accident or ticket, they simply disappear. But the politicians won't do what is necessary to stop this idiocy, so we all have to pay HUGE premiums for uninsured motorist coverage. today

Today when the cops issue a ticket, the courts not only charge a fine, but also an "assessment" on top of the fine, to pay for their administrative costs of the courts, if you want to plead not guilty and take the case to trial rather than forfeiting the bail money and mailing in the fine. So they win both ways.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

There would be too many people in jail that couldn't afford the fines........tailgating is subject to opinion and frequently some isn't tailgating and then someone sees a police car coming and jams on the brakes, at that point that person would now be tailgating so would it be right to site them? I think that the insurance laws (at least where I live) they take care of the problem with frequent offenders because the more you mess up the higher their premium is also in my state you can't get too many offences within a short period of time or they automatically suspend your licence...........so where I live it is already working

Answer 4

Wrong, while the end result may be an increase in revenue the greater goal in most cities and municipalities is to increase public safety. Most officials would prefer to be able to do that without having a devastating financial impact on drivers who are cited. Especially those being cited for the first time. As for your suggestion to involve actual jail time, would you be willing to carry the tax burden of the additional facilities this would necessitate.

Answer 5

Traffic tickets are for both safety and for revenue. If they were $1000 though, they'd be discrimitory towards the poor but rich people could still speed. They want to make the fines hurt but not be so excessive that people could never own up to them.

Answer 6

I agree with your assesment of the traffic ticket and fines. They're primarily used for generating extra revenue when town/city budget cuts take away from past budgets (make sense?) raising the fine to $1000 might be a bit much, but I understand where you are coming from. You could do some serious damage to repeat offenders, which might actually lead to an increase in crime rate.
After a handful of tickets, people might not be able to afford paying them off, which could lead to them looking for extra cash in a less than moral way of obtaining it.

Answer 7

Well in the state I live you get say 3 speeding tickets you may not have a driver license to drive with so in some ways some areas those are just like you say a revenue issue and others you get enough points you'll just loose your privilege to drive and possibly time in the big house.

Answer 8

Your right they are for revenue. Great example: My sister got a speeding tickets and she went to court an told them she would pay the fine but didn't want the points. They said OK, reduced the speed on the ticket and she didn't get points and pad less of a fine.

Answer 9

Try to always stay within 4-5 mph of the speed limit.
I've been doing that, and haven't had a ticket for about 18 years.
They are too expensive, keep the government out of your pocket!

Answer 10

A $100 fine is enough to get most people's attention. Are you a slow learner or what?

The fines you propose would result in a lot of people having to go to jail because they don't have $1,000 laying around.