If you go one mile per hour over the speed limit on Old Lynchburg, JPA, Monticello and soon, Elliot, Brandywine and Franklin, you will pay a $268 dollar fine. In case you were wondering how that compares to Virginia, that’s nearly 300% more than what Virginia thinks is necessary.
Oh, and let’s not forget that Virginia is already insane. I don’t know if it’s because we have an inferiority problem of not being a State (we are, in fact, a Commonwealth) or what, but we impose excessive fines on drivers already. In case you don’t believe me, read the Virginia Driver Civil Remedial Fee Explanation. In it you will find the following facts:
- ONLY Virginia residents have to pay these fines. That means if you live out of State (*COUGH, many UVA STUDENTS*), you don’t have to pay.
- If you drive over 80MPH, you have to pay a minimum of $350 and your fines could be as high as $1,000.
- If you drive more than 20MPH over the speed limit, you have to pay a minimum of $350 and your fines could be as high as $1,000.
[UPDATE: Echo points out that these were repealed. I missed this, but the point remains that $200 for minor speeding infractions is also excessive. I will update the table in the morning (only the last data point should change).]
Seriously? I don’t know how the City of Charlottesville gets to add an additional $200 onto already high fines, but it’s too much money. I’ve been lucky to not get any sort of ticket in years, but $300 dollars is A LOT of money for someone to pay for driving 1MPH over the speed limit. I think Charlottesville needs to reconsider how ridiculous this is.
What do you think?
Want to know exactly how much you have to pay in Charlottesville if you get caught driving over the speed limits in these designated areas? A detailed table is after the break.
[via Daily Progress]
Popularity: 42% [?]
Tagged as: Charlottesville, driving, fines, law, speeding, Virginia
I heard the remedial fees were revoked a couple weeks ago.
Proof
You are correct. I updated.. but that still doesn’t change the 300%!
If I am not mistaken, those cville “civil penalties” are only applicable on certain streets. Avon, Elliot and one other I forget. I would note that these are purportedly to address specific speeding issues on said streets. And as I have pointed out til I am blue in the face, these streets are in what could be considered lower middle class neighborhoods. When there was a ’speeding problem’ on Park Street, the answers were not “civil penalties” but tax payer funded flower beds in a “traffic calming” effort. And to me, that is some seriously fucked up shit.
I disagree with you Thor and this is why.
I heard Elliot was only added at the last minute because Parlie caused 4 major wrecks recently doing naked Tantric Yoga on his deck.
So we should all drive under 20MPH everywhere we go?
When you have a Thor Jr riding his bike or skateboarding around here you will change your attitude. I am in support of anything that delivers a better outcome for a pedestrian or biker in a high density neighborhood. I also believe the Interstate limit should be raised to 80mph, with the exception of 18 wheelers who should be restricted to 65.
It’s EllioTT
Double T’s!
/twice in one week!
Jaysus Caroline… you sound like ET.
Belmont Yo, that’s a very valid observation. You’re definitely not going to see the City spending those kinds of dollars on prettified traffic-calming in lower-income neighborhoods. The reasons are fairly obvious and entirely inexcusable. However, increased fines are only the first of many potential steps. If the increased fines, and hopefully some much-needed enforcement), don’t work, then they move on to the next step.
The traffic engineers generally talk to the neighbors themselves and find out what method they’d prefer for the traffic calming on their street(s). You’d be surprised how many folks want traffic humps instead of the bulb-outs and planting strips you see on Park St. The humps are noisy due to deceleration and acceleration, and really ugly. Until everyone gets used to them, there’s lots of bottoming out and associated scraping noises. So why are they an easier to sell to homeowners? Because many people don’t want the gub’mint putting a planting strip in front of their house that they might have to mow, even if it’s only 2×4 feet and they could mow it in one pass.
One plus for the traffic humps is that they are proven to be the most effective of slowing down cut-through traffic, but they do tend to then divert the traffic to the next street over… where they begin afresh, speeding through other people’s neighborhoods on their way to and from work. The sad reality is that if people didn’t drive like utter douchebags, none of this would even be necessary.
@4 thank your neighbors.
There’s usually a notice, comments meeting etc when there is a need for traffic calming and neighbors weigh in on the choices-flower beds, tickets, more cops, speed bumps etc. Dont believe me? Check out Chesapeake St by Meade Park. The city wanted to put in traffic calming there (and its not that nice a neighborhood) with plants etc and the neighbors balked. They didnt want to care for grass (cause thats the only plant alive ever to be planted I guess) and they didnt want to lose parking spaces. Granted almost every house that would have lost a space (two total) has a DRIVEWAY but whatever. Now the street looks like a fucking used car lot, wide with cars parked up and down both sides (wahoopties times three) and two huge speed bumps rather than narrow with trees and plantings and a grassy buffer between the sidewalk and the street, which is what had been planned.
Of course your problem may stem from the opposite-notice is posted about traffic calming and nobody shows up to complain-wham tickets galore.
ONLY Virginia residents have to pay these fines. That means if you live out of State (*COUGH, many UVA STUDENTS*), you don’t have to pay.
That in itself is just plain wrong! Regardless of where you are from if you break the law you should have to face the same as anyone else. Man that really pisses me off!!
You’re never going to get pulled over going 1 MPH over the limit.
@4: Belmont Yo, that’s a very valid observation. You’re definitely not going to see the City spending those kinds of dollars on prettified traffic-calming in lower-income neighborhoods. The reasons are fairly obvious and entirely inexcusable. However, increased fines are only the first of many potential steps. If the increased fines, and hopefully some much-needed enforcement), don’t work, then they move on to the next step.
The traffic engineers generally talk to the neighbors themselves and find out what method they’d prefer for the traffic calming on their street(s). You’d be surprised how many folks want traffic humps instead of the bulb-outs and planting strips you see on Park St. The humps are noisy due to deceleration and acceleration, and really ugly. Until everyone gets used to them, there’s lots of bottoming out and associated scraping noises. So why are they an easier to sell to homeowners? Because many people don’t want the gub’mint putting a planting strip in front of their house that they might have to mow, even if it’s only 2×4 feet and they could mow it in one pass.
One plus for the traffic humps is that they are proven to be the most effective of slowing down cut-through traffic, but they do tend to then divert the traffic to the next street over… where they begin afresh, speeding through other people’s neighborhoods on their way to and from work. The sad reality is that if people didn’t drive like utter douchebags, none of this would even be necessary.
@11– ditto. What a debacle Chesapeake was. The WM is still cringing. And now we’ll get to do relive it with the Meade pool project. Good times…
@ 13, many UVA students, many VA TECH students, VCU, ODU, JMU, etc. are out of state. Is your point that these out of state students encompass such a powerful lobby that they forced the VA legislature and governor to pass a bill to burden VA residents to their benefit? Anyway, I believe that law has been rescinded.
Avon St., between Palatine Ave. and Druid Ave. is very dangerous. Visibility is poor because of all the cars parked in the street. I have witnessed numerous accidents at the corner of Rockland and Avon, mainly caused by people pulling out from Rockland Ave. I think that intersection has a reputation because trucks that use it all the time, such as the Waste Management trucks will blow their horns as they approach Rockland Ave. So I support the city trying to crack down on speeding there, but I can see Avon St. from my house and I don’t see any evidence that people are driving more slowly now that they introduced the extra $200 fine.
Oops, double posting. Icky. Sorry.
i’ve weighed in on this before, but i’ll say it again that i see nothing wrong with the speeding fines. speeding is dangerous, you have a speedometer that tells you how fast you are going, and you know there is a fine for it…so just don’t do it if you are worried about the costs. it’s really a pretty simple thing to avoid.
i mean i’ve seen signs that say littering is something like a $250 fine. some people may think that is too high, others too low, but the fact is that if you don’t do it you won’t have to pay.
and like ethan said, you aren’t going to get pulled over for 1mph.
“and like ethan said, you aren’t going to get pulled over for 1mph.”
a few months ago there was a Rant supposedly from some cop who said that he would pull you over for 1 mph, even if you were passing on 250.
As your speedometer is only 10 % +/- accuratee and you challenge the fine due to your not being able to comply to these limits you are likely to get of.
If you find the fines are not able to be fought in court due to it being a days pay, welcome to the real disgusting way of screwing the public. This means you. Thats how its set up.
Put the bastards out of business, slow down, create traffic grid lock/lockup and dont pay your fines till you see the whites of their eyes. Big brother will be hurting at this point. Actually, never pay any fines “if you think you were right and cant afford to fight”
Well, that would never hold up in court and he’s a dick.
I have been pulled for 4 mph over. But that was back when I had an easily “profiled” car. Now that I drive a kleenex box, I am largely invisible.
seems to me charlottesville’s solution to the speeding problem is to gridlock every road in the city, making it impossible to move, much less speed.
If I pay one of these fines, which I inevitably will, can they start picking up my trash for free?
“your speedometer is only 10 % +/- accuratee”
yeah, i’m always surprised when i drive past those “your speed” signs & see the difference. my brother told me speedometers are set to show you more than radar detectors see, but i don’t think that’s true.
i’ve been pulled over for speeding (& various other things) in a volvo station wagon. i’ve only ended up having to pay once though (when i was allegedly going 23 over). maybe they figure soccer moms will heed their warnings?
@26: You’ve only had that car 3 months. How many times have you been pulled over in it?
@27 none! i got a 960 for my 17th birthday & drove it till it died in 2003 when i got my jetta which someone not me totalled.
@28: Oh, I forgot/didn’t know there was a previous version.
@16 I never said it was the out of towners fault, I was merely stating I found that aspect of the law unfair. In any case, I do hope it was rescinded.