I would add to the list one more CRITICAL one: Don’t Get Political. Saying “Do you know who I am?” always elicited one response from me. “Yes sir/ma’am, you’re the person who’s about to get a ticket for …….” And don’t imply that you’ll use your political connections to make life hard for the officer. It’s against the law in most jurisdictions. They call it bribery, just like offering money.

That aside, most traffice enforcement IS about revenue, not safety. Something in the neighborhood of 80% of all serious accidents take place in the area of intersections. On the other hand, probably 90% of traffic tickets are speeding tickets via some sort of speed monitoring equipment – and not placed in an intersection – or after an accident. Why not write drivers up for blowing through lights, failing to yield to pedestrians or other vehicles, following too closely, etc? Simple: it is much more difficult to write a successful ticket for that compared to writing speeding tickets, and it takes a lot more work. Much easier to just set the alarm on your radar or laser, sit back, do some paperwork or listen to the radio, and wait for the speed alarm to go off.

Traffic laws are intended to enhance public safety. However, they’re enforced primarily with revenue production in hand and done in the manner that requires the least amount of effort.

Think about it. If they REALLY didn’t want you to speed, they’d do something like fine you 10% of your net income, require compulsary court appearances, etc. THEN you’d have a deterrent people would seriously think about. On the other hand, then people would contest every single ticket – and when you fight it in court, their court costs once all the government wages are added up are a lot more than your ticket. All that easy ticket money would dry up, court expenses would go up, and that really isn’t what government wants. They want the penalty to be just at the point it will deter you a bit – maybe – but that most people will simply pay up on their fines without ever taking up one minute of court time.

A good ticket is a good ticket and should always be written. But traffic violations as a budgeted form of revenue for many jurisdictions makes a mockery of the whole concept of public safety, enforcement, and deterrence.

Oh… by the way… your chances of getting out of a ticket once pulled over by a cop assigned to traffic enforcement are just about zero, no matter what you do or say. He’s out there to write tickets.

A few hints for those of you who have gotten tickets:
1) Nolo contendre (or no contest) is your friend. This best friend of new people allows for a person to plea nolo 1 time every few years (varies depending on state). This plea is a compromise. You pay the fine, but it won’t go on your record and your insurance will never see it, which means no points. And after all, that’s what most people don’t want.

2) Defensive driving. Take this class. When you complete it, you can do seevral things with it. You can send it to your insurance company and they will usually give you a discount for having taken the class. You can also take it to the DMV (Dept. of Motor Vehicles) and they will automatically remove 5 points from your license.

3) Talk to the solicitor/prosecutor before the case is tried. A lot of them work with you, especially if you don’t have a huge record. They’ve been known to knoc recklesses down a bit. Also, a lot of times for speeding, if you are just a few MPH oevr a cutoff (especially those of you that are so close to 21 but not quite therE) they will trade you community service or defensive driving for a reduced speed, which will allow you to keep your license. It’s worth trying to make a deal because the worst that could happen is a no.

4) Along similar lines, bargain even when you know there’s no deal on reducing speed or dropping tickets. If you have a suspended icense, for example, all hope is not lost. Most times, they will give you a provisional license if you ask for it. This allows you to drive to and from work, school, and religious activities. It isn’t a full license, it usually has a curfew, and if you’re caught going to and from anywhere but those placeas you’re totally busted and won’t be allowed to drive, but that type of license is better than nothing, especially if you have bills to pay.

5) Know your state times. For instance, know how many years it takes to have something disappear from a record, how many points you can accrue before your license is suspened, how many years you have to wait before ebign allowed to plea nolo again. Also, know age limitations. If you’re under 21, a bnolo plea will do you very little good because they are required to report those cases, so you might want to save it for a rainy over 21 day.

6) Goes without saying – Don’t Be Dumb!! If you drink and drive you DESERVE to be off the road!!! Get a designated driver or call a cab!