Speed Traps in Virginia

A speed trap is an area of the road that is heavily monitored by law enforcement specifically for people that are speeding. When people are talking about speed traps, usually they are upset because speed traps are generally taken to be a negative thing. They are often strategically placed with the officer not readily visible so that people who are speeding are caught before they have an opportunity to adjust their speed upon seeing the officer.

If you have been pulled over for speeding as a result of being caught in a speed trap, you should contact a Virginia speeding ticket lawyer to discuss speed traps in more detail, including what the purpose of speed traps are and whether they are legal. For more information call and schedule a consultation today.

Different Types of Speed Traps

There are a variety of different speed traps commonly used in Virginia. The one that people think of most often is where the officer waits in an area where the speed limit drops significantly, and many drivers have yet to lower their speed so they are easy targets. Sometimes, there are also officers waiting on roads where speeding is more prevalent, such as the bottom of a hill or on a long stretch of straight highway.

It is a misconception that you have some amount of time after a speed limit change to lower you speed because in fact, you should have already slowed down. The speed limit takes effect right where the sign is posted. Sometimes there is even a sign warning that there is going to be a reduction in speed up ahead so you should be slowing down much further back before you even reach the speed limit sign.

What Is The Purpose of Speed Traps?

There are varying possibilities for the purpose of speed traps. Officers generally like to claim that speed traps are set up for safety reasons and they back this up by having speed traps in the areas that do see a lot of accidents due to speed. So it is possible that speed traps sometimes are set up for safety reasons. However other times, there are some roads that are really questionable as to why the speed limit is not a bit higher. It could be easy to argue the other side as well, that speed traps are to extract revenue.

Legality of Speed Traps

In Virginia, speed traps are completely legal. Virginia is one of the strictest states in the country for speeders and law enforcement is very proud of this fact. Judges see these harsh laws as a positive rather than a negative. Due to the result of their strict enforcement of these laws, being caught in a speed traps is not going to be helpful to your defense.

What Else Should People Know Regarding Speed Traps in Virginia

Everyone should know that speed traps are very prevalent in Virginia. They are found all over, particularly in areas that see a lot of people unfamiliar with those roads, such as the roads leading to beaches or other tourist attractions.  There are generally a lot of people from all over and they should know that speed traps are going to be unavoidable.