Texaggie7nine said:

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New World Ag said:

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I drive through Hearne and Calvert relatively often. Never had an issue....just make sure to drive the limit and make sure your registration is up to date. Pretty much the same as every other small town.

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Here's the thing. Speed limits in small towns suck. 35 on a 4 lane road? f.u. Not doing it.

They are sucking off the tit of transit that is forced to go through their crappy town to get where they are going.

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fu not doing it! You really showed them when you are shelling out $300

Years ago, I was on a motorcycle going from Aggieland to Houston trying to outrun a large storm.

I usually drive the speed limit, but that day I was going a bit over.

A couple of miles west of Waller, I flew past some car filled with what looked like high school kids. When I got to town, I slowed down to the speed limit. In the middle of town, they went past me well above the speed limit. I stopped at a gas station and topped off my gas tank (about a gallon), and continued on. Sure enough, on the east side of town, the police had that car stopped.

The way I look at it, if you are speeding through town, they should be able to write two tickets -- one for speeding and one for being a dumbass.

Texaggie7nine said:

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New World Ag said:

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I drive through Hearne and Calvert relatively often. Never had an issue....just make sure to drive the limit and make sure your registration is up to date. Pretty much the same as every other small town.

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Here's the thing. Speed limits in small towns suck. 35 on a 4 lane road? f.u. Not doing it.

They are sucking off the tit of transit that is forced to go through their crappy town to get where they are going.

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So basically, you think you have the right to speed and ignore laws you don't like?

Interesting.

Does that apply to people who come to your house and take your things? What if they say, "f.u. not doing it" to no trespassing and theft laws. I know in YOUR mind it isn't the same thing, but 2 main things on roads kill: speed and alcohol. So traffic laws, regardless of whether YOU like them or not, serves the same purpose as property laws. If you still don't think so, the proper remedy is to work to change them. Or stop complaining when you get busted and pay the price. I just hope for other people's sake you don't end up in more trouble by hurting someone. With that attitude of your's, one has to wonder.

I don't like some of the speed limits either but guess what? It isn't like it news that a town is going to be 35 or lower going through it. Every small town in Texas is like that, and I've passed through a bunch (and gotten tickets in a couple).

With all that said, I do think the legislature can reasonably (and should) set limits on traffic fines as I think using them as a source of revenue is an abuse of power. But to say "f.u." to a law you don't like invites all sorts of problems you don't want.

Remember, you're always free to fight the ticket in court. Appeal the decision if it doesn't go your way. Some of these traffic courts are "courts of record" (meaning its a bigger pain to appeal) and others aren't (meaning an appeal goes to the County Court and starts from scratch). Few of these towns are going to fight either kind of an appeal. It will cost you more than the ticket, but if a lot of people end up doing that, they'll lower their fines or quit writing them. I have fought cases like this in court and been successful. Of course, I have a bit of an advantage, but a reasonably intelligent person (without an attitude, which may be a problem to the person I'm responding to) still has a chance. Not a lot of procedural or evidentiary rules as the judges are often non-lawyers. Explain your case to a jury if you don't like the judge.

New Mexico and their arbitrary "safety corridors" where you have to turn on your lights and ticket prices double. Their speed limit is already slower than Texas so they're just trying to torture you as you try to get out of their state as fast as possible.

NM residents tell us that cops will let you go about 10 over. Your mileage may vary.

Small towns suck

The best thing about Hearne, if traveling 79, is FM's 485 and 1644. I go through there frequently- always wished the old building where the those intersect could talk.

Further, Sunray was previously dead nuts on Franklin…..

doubledog said:

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That same ticket in Houston? $75. Hearne is charging almost 4 times the amount Houston charges

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You got the same ticket in Houston? Dude time to register your vehicle!

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Way to jump to conclusions. No it's advertised on the city of Houston website that the fine is $75. And I know someone that got an expired registration ticket in Montgomery county (Conroe) who said theirs was only $85.

ABATTBQ11 said:

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Krautag81 said:

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New World Ag said:

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Are you in that big a hurry that you need that one minute of time? Small towns want slower traffic going through to make it easier for vehicles to merge in and prevent accidents.

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Correct, if you don't have some kind of limit those idiots would fly thru the town…..dangerous.

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There are towns where the reduced speed is pointless though. Like Paige where 290 goes to 55. It's a 4 lane divided highway with no lights. If you can get in and merge 3 miles down the road at 75 then you can do it there too.

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As a resident, I agree they drop it to 55 too far to the west, but they have to slow traffic for 2104 or people would die when trucks try to cross the highway there, or people try to enter and exit the highway. Hell, it was only last year they finally gave us actual deceleration and turn lanes instead of forcing near suicidal left turns out of the fast lane to go south.

Sniffing Accountant said:

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Small towns suck

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Bigot

IDaggie06 said:

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I've always avoided driving through towns like Hearne and Calvert as much as possible as they are notorious speed traps.

I have a second car that is pretty old but I let the registration expire. I had to drive it through Hearne recently and got pulled over Apparently he ran my plates while at a stop-sign (for no other reason than being nosy) and pulled me over for the registration. $280 ticket. That same ticket in Houston? $75. Hearne is charging almost 4 times the amount Houston charges, that is insane.

Looking at their other fines and they are much higher than other cities.

I'm in no way saying I didn't deserve the ticket (though I think nosy cops suck) but how can a small Texas town charge so much more? The local town government just votes on whatever amount they want to charge?

Then they put a phone number on the ticket but nobody ever answers the phone and there is no voicemail. They don't respond to emails either. Many google reviews say the same thing.

F these small towns using their police force for revenue streams.

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These are 2016 numbers for some cities, including College Station:

https://www.kltv.com/story/32169200/state-data-shows-tylers-9m-in-citation-revenue-exceeds-comparable-cities/

Sniffing Accountant said:

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Small towns suck

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Stay in the big ones. Please.

About a decade ago, I was pulled over in Marlin for going 57 in a 55 about 100ft before it dropped to 40. Received a ticket for 57 in a 40, with a $190 fine plus fees - would've come to more than $250. Showed up in court with dash cam footage, but the judge threw it out the minute the cop didn't show up. Said 57 in a 55 (showing video proof of the red and blue lights lighting me up before I got to the 55mph sign) wasn't worth the court's time, but I could still do community service if I liked. Funniest thing I heard all day.

Westlake (Tarant County) uses Keller Police mercenaries to enforce traffic and they make a huge amount of revenue off of it for their extremely wealthy town.

The_Waco_Kid said:

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About a decade ago, I was pulled over in Marlin for going 57 in a 55 about 100ft before it dropped to 40. Received a ticket for 57 in a 40, with a $190 fine plus fees - would've come to more than $250. Showed up in court with dash cam footage, but the judge threw it out the minute the cop didn't show up. Said 57 in a 55 (showing video proof of the red and blue lights lighting me up before I got to the 55mph sign) wasn't worth the court's time, but I could still do community service if I liked. Funniest thing I heard all day.

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I got a warning ticket for doing one mile per hour over the speed limit just north of Aspermont one Christmas Eve. That was by a couple of DPS troopers, not the city police.

I was kind of proud of that ticket -- it proved that my '64 International C-900 pickup could exceed the speed limit. At the time, it was 55. With a 75 mph speed limit, the only possible ways it could reach that would be with a very strong tailwind or down a steep hill or sitting on a trailer.

New World Ag said:

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Are you in that big a hurry that you need that one minute of time? Small towns want slower traffic going through to make it easier for vehicles to merge in and prevent accidents.

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LOL! "Small town' and 'merge; in the same sentence.

I live in a small town. Believe me when I say it's a money grab... pure and simple.

But hey, safety and citizens.

MouthBQ98 said:

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ABATTBQ11 said:

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Krautag81 said:

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New World Ag said:

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Are you in that big a hurry that you need that one minute of time? Small towns want slower traffic going through to make it easier for vehicles to merge in and prevent accidents.

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Correct, if you don't have some kind of limit those idiots would fly thru the town…..dangerous.

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There are towns where the reduced speed is pointless though. Like Paige where 290 goes to 55. It's a 4 lane divided highway with no lights. If you can get in and merge 3 miles down the road at 75 then you can do it there too.

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As a resident, I agree they drop it to 55 too far to the west, but they have to slow traffic for 2104 or people would die when trucks try to cross the highway there, or people try to enter and exit the highway. Hell, it was only last year they finally gave us actual deceleration and turn lanes instead of forcing near suicidal left turns out of the fast lane to go south.

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Yep. Even though I don't live on 2104 anymore, I still drive that stretch of 290 daily. I agree the drop is too far to the west, but it needs to be 55 as you approach the intersection.

And that one ain't a money grab. DPS is the only real traffic enforcement there. The county guys only show up for a crime/domestic disturbance.

Most municipalities set their speed limits artificially low.

I was briefly on a "traffic advisory committee" for where I was living at the time. They showed rules for setting speed limits based upon surveying the speeds people actually drove. Totally ignored. C&D showed research years ago showing that most city speed limits were artificially low, with the clear intent of increasing revenue.

Oddly enough, McAllen is an outlier. Most surface roads have a fair speed limit, e.g. 45 where most places would set 35. And you know what, I don't see as much "speeding" in McAllen. (Yes, between winter Texans and idiots there's quite a few driving too slowly...)

AgDad121619 said:

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Texaggie7nine said:

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New World Ag said:

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I drive through Hearne and Calvert relatively often. Never had an issue....just make sure to drive the limit and make sure your registration is up to date. Pretty much the same as every other small town.

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Here's the thing. Speed limits in small towns suck. 35 on a 4 lane road? f.u. Not doing it.

They are sucking off the tit of transit that is forced to go through their crappy town to get where they are going.

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fu not doing it! You really showed them when you are shelling out $300

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Never had a small town speeding ticket. I slow down, but I sure as hell don't go the speed limit. Usually keep it 10 over whatever it is.

I've never had a problem driving through Hearne or Calvert.

JamesPShelley said:

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New World Ag said:

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Are you in that big a hurry that you need that one minute of time? Small towns want slower traffic going through to make it easier for vehicles to merge in and prevent accidents.

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LOL! "Small town' and 'merge; in the same sentence.

I live in a small town. Believe me when I say it's a money grab... pure and simple.

But hey, safety and citizens.

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Merge, as in vehicles pulling out of parking lots, cross streets, etc. Also to reduce traffic noise, possibly? Who wants freeway speed traffic on the main drag of their town?

Seems like a good tactic to keep out the kind of people that frown upon slowing down. Win win.

IDaggie06 said:

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I've always avoided driving through towns like Hearne and Calvert as much as possible as they are notorious speed traps.

I have a second car that is pretty old but I let the registration expire. I had to drive it through Hearne recently and got pulled over Apparently he ran my plates while at a stop-sign (for no other reason than being nosy) and pulled me over for the registration. $280 ticket. That same ticket in Houston? $75. Hearne is charging almost 4 times the amount Houston charges, that is insane.

Looking at their other fines and they are much higher than other cities.

I'm in no way saying I didn't deserve the ticket (though I think nosy cops suck) but how can a small Texas town charge so much more? The local town government just votes on whatever amount they want to charge?

Then they put a phone number on the ticket but nobody ever answers the phone and there is no voicemail. They don't respond to emails either. Many google reviews say the same thing.

F these small towns using their police force for revenue streams.

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Registration should be a county or state level set fine since the requirement comes from that level.