zlacker

There is a specific county in WA that was somewhat notorious for pulling over cars with BC plates. Before I knew to be careful in that area I got a few speeding tickets in the same spot, once on the way to Seattle and also the drive back a few days later. I met many people with similar stories. I probably was speeding slightly In each case, but no more than the other cars on the I5. Both stops required me to get out of the car and answer a ridiculous series of questions. Few people could afford the time off to attend court and contest the ticket, or even worse to have a warrant issued, so the county collected a decent amount of cash.

It was harassment and country-of-residence profiling (driving while Canadian, though admittedly it was also a major corridor for pot smuggling at the time). Crooked police cultures can set in for all sorts of reasons.

>>krrrh+(OP)
In my experience WA and OR police make up their budgets with traffic tickets, especially from out of state drivers because those generally won't be motivated to fight in court. You will find yourself targeted especially in touristy areas ( on the OR coast for example).

Additionally, all around MSFT campuses in the old days there'd be cops waiting to catch exiting employees going 36 in a 30 (exactly 5+ over) at the end of the month to fill their quota.

There used to be a host of lawyers on the Eastside who specialized in getting rid of traffic tickets for MSFT employees on technicalities. It was cheaper than having your insurance jacked up.

I got a traffic ticket every 6 months or so in WA (all of them for 6 miles above in a residential, because I drove like an old man even when I was young). Since moving to CA, in almost two decades I've gotten exactly one for rolling a stop sign. My driving habits haven't changed.

All that to say traffic enforcement is a relied-upon income stream for some places in the US.

>>mustst+34
If anyone is ever in the situation where they get a ticket every 6months, please buy a good radar detector. Your increased situational awareness will increase, and you'll usually be able to spot a cop.

Throw in waze and you're in a situation where you can basically cruise at 90 for a long distance vs. 75. Escort or V1

>>dkn775+tD
IIRC radar detectors were illegal in Washington in those days (for obvious reasons). Not sure if they are still.

For these kinds of stops, where they were waiting on side roads for you drive by, a radar detector might not even help much ?

I did have friends with detectors for highway driving, so your suggestion is solid. I wish cars had them as options like leather seats :-)

>>mustst+UZ
If they wait on the side of the road for you to drive by, while they may see you speeding, they usually have to have an official speed in order to serve a ticket - they may pull you over however. The main risk is LIDAR guns, however they must always be still and usually window has to be down (ruling out rainy days, cold days, etc. usually). They may also use "instant on" Ka Band, but in general they will key it up and you'll get the alert. I have indeed been pulled over by a cop who was sitting still while I sped by, but they will typically pull out and come up on you while keying up the radar, at that point you will be alerted and usually slow down before they can get a speed.