Cops and traffic law enforcement

[MolaKule]

LEO's do the job they have sworn to do but in most cases, we don't have enough of them.

If there are dangerous intersections or speeders call the local police dept. number (not 911) and request an increase in patrols; be respectful and be accurate as to the locations. It has worked beautifully for us.

 

[dnewton3]

Some comments from 25 years of enforcement experience, in no particular order .... This is a generalization, but I've spoke with many cops in many states and these are fairly common observations:

- LE agencies are just as diverse as any group of people; there are good ones and bad ones, forward thinking and backward thinking, well funded and poorly funded, respected and disrespected, etc ... And so "enforcement" is an output of many inputs.

- traffic enforcement is a function of available resources, time and prioritization

- there are often federal grant programs which have lots of money available for specific traffic enforcement, but many agenicies do not apply because they either are unaware, or unwilling to limit themselves to the conditions of the grant

- as a generalization, it is a misconception to believe that LE agencies directly get money derrived from traffic tickets. In fact, there's a very good reason NOT to tie tickets to revenue, as agencies would then be biased in traffic enforcement, likley over-zealous. Typically most states break down the "ticket" money into court costs and fines. The court costs are often a fixed rate; typically set by the state legislature. The "fine" is up to the judge, and may or may not have a min or max depending on state law. The "fine" would be directed to whatever each state protocol decides is appropriate; might go to the city, county, town, whatever ...

- prosecutorial entites often have skin in the game, as they can "defer" a ticket for a "fee". Rather than prosecute the ticket, they hold it in limbo for a year, and as long as you don't get another violation, it is dropped while never having gone to court. While this seems like a scam, it's actually beneficial for the tax payer, as these "fees" are kept in the Prosecutor's funds, which help offset the incredibly expensive costs of high-profile cases such as murder, rape, etc.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

So cops should avoid all situations that could be dangerous no matter what? Isn't danger part of their job?

Legally speaking they're not required to to participate in some dangerous situations.

Ex. DeShaney vs Winnebago (1989)

 

[Hillbilly Deluxe]

Me and my brother have talked about this for 2+ years.

We both see high enforcement in areas where, well, I'll just say that the cops generally don't have to worry about being involved in altercations, shootings, violence and being on the news......

Thank goodness for the summer of 2020....

 

[totegoat]

I see many violations, almost zero traffic stops. Too much police time spent on vagrants and their trash.

 

[vavavroom]

Traffic laws are more commonly enforced by traffic cops rather than by patrol cops who mostly handle service calls. Police departments are understaffed. I still see the Highway Patrol enforce traffic laws. SF has the TOLE or Transit Oriented Lane Enforcement, under which a MUNI bus driver can record traffic violations that will result in a ticket. The buses are equipped with cameras and record offenses such as people blocking bus stops and bus-only lanes, not letting a bus merge into a lane, blocking crosswalks etc. I have repeatedly heard a bus driver announce over the external speaker to a driver who was blocking a bus stop, "You are getting a ticket."

As far as speeding goes, it's quite nuts. Mostly it's 35 mph on city streets here and people go 60. On the freeway, most people are at least 15 mph over the limit. What gets me is where the worst speeding occurs. For example, where freeways merge m, any drivers suddenly go 90 or faster and start zigzagging across merging lanes cutting off others and squeezing in without any regard for safety.

The latest bad habit in the city is making right turns not from the right lane but from the middle lane, blocking everyone in the middle lane while waiting their turn. Then some drivers in the middle start moving into the left lane only to be foiled by a vehicle waiting to make a left turn. Directional signals are not used all that much but people drive with their flashers on. This has been happening for a few months now and I see it every time I drive in the city. What brought this on?

 

[football]

I had ten years as a deputy.

In my county you handled the calls. If there were lots of calls, you better not be pulling someone over.

If it was slow and no calls were on the screen, THEN the deputies would be free to go proactively patrol and look for traffic violations, drugs, or criminals.

We had a traffic unit with 4 deputies. Their entire job was to handle traffic complaints in the county. They would apply for federal DOT grants , which paid for MORE traffic enforcement. Then have road deputies fill in on overtime and only work traffic, during the grant period.

The average person only thinks of cops as traffic officers. This is because the average person never needs a cop, never sees a cop, and only talks to cops when they get pulled over every few years. Traffic patrol is honestly less than 5% of a cops job.

In many areas cops are underfunded and low on man power. Traffic control is not a priority when you have 20 calls holding.

One of my best friends is (was) a patrol Sgt the last few years. He says it’s like babysitting. All these new cops that are 21-22 years old, always screwing up, always making huge mistakes. It drove him nuts. Hardly any deputies left with any real experience. The entire squad was all green and fresh kids basically playing dress up and pretending to be cops. He transferred to detectives at the earliest opportunity. SGT that replaced him is lucky to have 8 years on the force and is barely adequate as a regular patrol officer, let alone one that now supervises ten.

 

[KCJeep]

LEO for 26 years, some great comments by @dnewton3 , @vavavroom and @football.

I'll add that the dollars per hour to keep a police cruiser on the road is very high. Traffic enforcement is rarely even a break-even proposition. For officers it's about public safety. Yes, there are some cities that love raking in the fees as it helps offset the police department costs, but the departments don't get those funds.

Short staffing is as worse as it's been in a long time, and police officers are continually asked to deal with more and more "social" situations than ever because nobody else is willing to do it. You have to fight the fire with the most smoke, and traffic enforcement has fallen pretty far on the priority list for a lot of agencies.

I'll also add that an awful lot of negative citizen contacts start over traffic stops and despite what the media says there is no such thing as a "routine traffic stop". You never know what you're getting, and once you are in it, you are in it. With social values having swung the way they have, there is less incentive than ever for officers to stop cars for traffic alone.

I have seen a steady, notable increase in the lack of adherence to traffic laws the last few years, I'm convinced it is the first "tell" of our society beginning to unravel. You simply have to have stability and "law and order" to survive long term.

My experience and my opinion both.

 

[Jdeere562]

I got a ticket for going 58 MPH in a 55 MPH zone in 1991. Still rubs me raw.

Makes my want to do a pit maneuver on the idiots driving on that highway there now at 80 MPH!

Take a deep breath.....LOL

 

[Pew]

IL has cracked down here and there but that hasn't stopped the craziness. A couple weeks ago, there were a lot of local and state patrols out everywhere for a few weeks. Can't stop them all though, especially when it's everybody going 15+ over.

 

[mk378]

despite what the media says there is no such thing as a "routine traffic stop".

That's actually a phrase that the police originated. Media should press for the reason and report "stopped for speeding," "stopped for running a red light," "stopped for apparently no reason," etc.

Most media is no longer going along with the entirely Newspeak of "officer-involved shooting" any more.

 

[SaberOne]

Law enforcement in my area is quite active. Most of my driving is on the freeway between Yuma and Phoenix or San Diego. Fortunately for me the CHP is lazy and they just leave their radar guns on constant-on. Here in Snake Hollow or anywhere else in Arizona, they’re more clever. My Valentine One has saved my ass more times than I can count.

 

[fat biker]

I am glad I came across this discussion.

Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, life behind the wheel is chaotic and uncivilized. Stop Signs, Yield Signs, Red Lights. None of it seems to matter. Law Enfocement, at least from where I sit is sorely lacking. In theory, our local PD has a Traffic Unit. I cannot recall the last time I saw what looked like a traffic stop by our local PD.

For some time now, while driving, I tell myself the sad state of affairs on the roads just might drive me to move elsewhere. Then I wonder outloud what is it ike elsewhere? Looks like i have my answer. Sad. Really Sad.

There must be some cities or towns where people respect their neighbors and drive accordingly. Or am I just showing my age?

fat biker

 

[borgward]

Are there ANY areas where cops enforce traffic laws anymore? They don't do it in my area, or anywhere within a state or two of my area. I don't get why they don't. Tickets = fines, which = revenue for police departments. Drivers in my local area are absolutely nuts and pay no attention whatsoever to traffic laws. Speeding here isn't 5 over the limit, it's 15, 20, or more over the limit. Cops could literally just park where they could pull drivers over and write tickets all day long. And it isn't just the speeding, it's red light running, tailgating, no signaling, cutting people off, and all of this greatly contributes to road rage. I know traffic enforcement isn't their only job, but in recent years it seems like it's not part of their at all anymore...

In Austin TX the cops pick on bicycles and let the cars run red lights.

 

[grampi]

IL has cracked down here and there but that hasn't stopped the craziness. A couple weeks ago, there were a lot of local and state patrols out everywhere for a few weeks. Can't stop them all though, especially when it's everybody going 15+ over.

We have two main streets in our town, and the police could literally just set up a road block on either of these streets and write everyone a ticket. The speed limit on these two streets is 35 and most people do 45 or 50, and even faster in some sections. My theory is, if LEOs would hit these streets hard for a couple of weeks, once everyone sees that there will be consequences for their criminal driving, they would slow down. Of course this process would have to be repeated every so often as these drivers would certainly go back to their heathen ways once they realize they're not being watched, but I think if this was done enough times, people would just slow down permanently...

 

[grampi]

That's actually a phrase that the police originated. Media should press for the reason and report "stopped for speeding," "stopped for running a red light," "stopped for apparently no reason," etc.

Most media is no longer going along with the entirely Newspeak of "officer-involved shooting" any more.

The news media is in an all out war against police. They couldn't care less what the perp did to get pulled over in the first place, they're too busy trying to make the cops look like the bad guys...

 

[incognito_2u]

“Are there ANY areas where cops enforce traffic laws anymore?”

Come out and visit my Village here on Long Island. It was voted one of the Top 10 safest areas in all of NY State. This was achieved because in my Village, there is Zero discretion when it comes to the enforcement of the VTL. Any criminal worth their salt realizes this and tends to keep their distance…..

 

[Chris142]

The news media is in an all out war against police. They couldn't care less what the perp did to get pulled over in the first place, they're too busy trying to make the cops look like the bad guys...

Same thing here. Especially Facebook

 

[mk378]

"Routine traffic stop" is language designed and intended to leave the impression that cops have a right to stop a car to interrogate and/or search the driver without a specific legal reason. It's a very pro-police frame of mind. The phrase reached the American vernacular by being used as boilerplate in police press releases.

 

[PWMDMD]

We have very active local police. Very few speeders in my town. If you don't break any traffic laws then they leave you alone. If you do, you're probably getting pulled over.