Drove down I-244 last night a few times making a trip downtown for some things we had going on downtown and literally every mile there was a police car pulling someone over or waiting in the shadows for the next person..I did notice one thing most of the vehicles that were pulled over had either a tail light or headlight out, I than drove down memorial and high school kids speeding up and down, very few cops. Were they looking for easy targets they can charge or anyone else heard anything. There was few few also on the BA. Perhaps they were targeting people driving thru Oklahoma? Note it was the TPD and Highway Patrol
Quote from: zstyles on January 20, 2013, 03:02:34 PM
Drove down I-244 last night a few times making a trip downtown for some things we had going on downtown and literally every mile there was a police car pulling someone over or waiting in the shadows for the next person..I did notice one thing most of the vehicles that were pulled over had either a tail light or headlight out, I than drove down memorial and high school kids speeding up and down, very few cops. Were they looking for easy targets they can charge or anyone else heard anything. There was few few also on the BA. Perhaps they were targeting people driving thru Oklahoma? Note it was the TPD and Highway Patrol
My guess is nice weather, the availability of grant money to pay bonuses, and
TULSA, Oklahoma - The grace period is over for an Oklahoma law many drivers didn't even know existed.
The highway patrol says it will now start enforcing the law that targets reckless drivers and carries with it big consequences.
This law went into effect in November 2011, toughening the penalties for certain traffic violations.
If you are caught, your license will be revoked for an entire year.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says there are a lot of misconceptions about reckless driving.
"Most of what we see are speeding combined with tailgating, or inattentive driving, or failure to signal."
It's up to the officer or trooper to decide what's reckless, but every violator still has his day in court.
Remember, the license revocation is added onto existing penalties of a $249 fine, and there are no exceptions to that suspension.
Quote from: zstyles on January 20, 2013, 03:02:34 PM
Drove down I-244 last night a few times making a trip downtown for some things we had going on downtown and literally every mile there was a police car pulling someone over or waiting in the shadows for the next person..I did notice one thing most of the vehicles that were pulled over had either a tail light or headlight out, I than drove down memorial and high school kids speeding up and down, very few cops. Were they looking for easy targets they can charge or anyone else heard anything. There was few few also on the BA. Perhaps they were targeting people driving thru Oklahoma? Note it was the TPD and Highway Patrol
They had announced a speeding crack-down on the BA last week and surrounding surface streets. I honestly didn't see any sort of action on the BA myself.
Quote from: Conan71 on January 20, 2013, 04:46:24 PM
They had announced a speeding crack-down on the BA last week and surrounding surface streets. I honestly didn't see any sort of action on the BA myself.
OK, give me my radar detector back then.
;)
Quote from: Hoss on January 20, 2013, 06:04:54 PM
OK, give me my radar detector back then.
;)
If you can now loose your drivers license for a year for not signaling a lane change, your going to need a bigger detector.
Quote from: patric on January 20, 2013, 06:24:05 PM
If you can now loose your drivers license for a year for not signaling a lane change, your going to need a bigger detector.
Me thinks you might be over-dramatizing this.
Quote from: Hoss on January 20, 2013, 06:26:54 PM
Me thinks you might be over-dramatizing this.
Then you'll love this:
"If someone slightly goes over the centerline, and they want to call that reckless driving and you lose your license for a year, I believe in sanctions in degrees that match the facts. I'm not sure in every instance that's going to be the case," Nick Slaymaker said.http://www.news9.com/story/20606318/ohp-enforcing-tough-penalties-under-new-traffic-laws
My question would be, how can they claim a "grace period" existed before aggressive enforcement, if there was apparently no "informative" period to educate people about new laws?
Quote from: patric on January 20, 2013, 07:46:40 PM
Then you'll love this:
"If someone slightly goes over the centerline, and they want to call that reckless driving and you lose your license for a year, I believe in sanctions in degrees that match the facts. I'm not sure in every instance that's going to be the case," Nick Slaymaker said.
http://www.news9.com/story/20606318/ohp-enforcing-tough-penalties-under-new-traffic-laws
My question would be, how can they claim a "grace period" existed before aggressive enforcement, if there was apparently no "informative" period to educate people about new laws?
Because it's LEO, Patric. In your eyes, I guess they can do no right.
Not everything that happens at the PD is black helicopters and such.
::)
Owasso slammed me with laser last week.My detector worked well again.
Speaking of Laser and Radar to throw this off topic since it seems to have some good information...Some good recommendations for some detectors...cost vs. value is important, I would like to pay for quality..I need a reminder to watch my speed every so often
Driving on the Cimarron Turnpike out west of Stillwater the other day and got pulled over by OHP for going 6mph over. Luckily I only got a warning.
I didn't even think it was possible to get pulled over for going 6 over. I saw the cop in the oncoming lanes and didn't bother even slowing down because I figured the chance of him bothering with a u-turn to pull me over for 6 over the limit were slim to none.
Quote from: TheTed on January 21, 2013, 12:14:57 AM
I didn't even think it was possible to get pulled over for going 6 over.
Really?
Quote from: TheTed on January 21, 2013, 12:14:57 AM
Driving on the Cimarron Turnpike out west of Stillwater the other day and got pulled over by OHP for going 6mph over. Luckily I only got a warning.
I didn't even think it was possible to get pulled over for going 6 over. I saw the cop in the oncoming lanes and didn't bother even slowing down because I figured the chance of him bothering with a u-turn to pull me over for 6 over the limit were slim to none.
I got pulled over last year doing a left lane pass for seven over by the OHP. Got a warning, but that was all. On 169. Maybe the LEO on that highway could concentrate more on the dump trucks who don't cover their loads.
I got pulled over near Nowata on 169 while not speeding.
I tried to explain to the policeman that I had the car on cruise control at one mile under the speed limit. He said I was lying and gave me a ticket for $100.
I had no choice but to pay it. Fighting the ticket would have been a half day and half a tank of gas.
F#&king liar. I hadn't had a speeding ticket in 20 years.
Quote from: Hoss on January 20, 2013, 07:53:17 PM
In your eyes, I guess they can do no right.
Oh good, I thought there might have been a problem with the factual accuracy of the citations.
Quote from: zstyles on January 20, 2013, 10:18:07 PM
Speaking of Laser and Radar to throw this off topic since it seems to have some good information...Some good recommendations for some detectors...cost vs. value is important, I would like to pay for quality..I need a reminder to watch my speed every so often
One of the biggest reasons to have a radar detector these days is the Safety Warning System, a transmitter and messaging system capable of sending a wide range of emergency warnings to motorists using advanced radar detectors.
http://americancityandcounty.com/mag/government_radar_detectors_warn
The Safety Warning System will also provide a general warning to the estimated 20 million drivers using older radar detectors not capable of displaying text messages.
"The system will provide a sophisticated warning capability today and serve as a stepping stone to the systems of the future," he says.
The new generation of "smart," radar detectors includes a built-in liquid crystal display capable of displaying up to 64 characters. When such a detector receives a safety message, it first sounds a special tone to alert the driver before displaying the message.
A second message can also be sent and displayed along with the first. This allows the system to warn of a hazard while also alerting the driver of a reduced speed limit, for instance.
Because the transmitter also sends out microwave signals on the K band, drivers using older radar detectors would still be alerted to a traffic hazard, though they could not be told the specific nature of it.
Transmitters would be located on police and other emergency vehicles and on construction equipment, bridges, existing overhead sign warning systems and other fixed sites. Portable transmitters could also be moved to locations wherever needed.
Since 1991 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has allowed use of unattended radar transmitters to trigger radar detectors and thereby warn drivers of hazards ranging from highway construction zones to road maintenance. "At least two studies have shown that drone transmitters capable of setting off the current generation of radar detectors are effective at slowing traffic in construction zones," says Janice Lee, president of RADAR.Forget using older detectors to find HPs since they mostly use lasers.
Quote from: Red Arrow on January 21, 2013, 07:56:11 AM
Really?
It's pretty hard to get pulled over for less than 10 over. OHP rarely writes tickets for it since they're worth no points. (or were, maybe that has changed?) I've gotten a few warnings for 6-10 over here in Oklahoma, but not any tickets yet. I've passed them going 6-10 over at least a hundred times at this point.
Last ticket I got was in New Hampshire back in 2006 a day or two before Christmas. The one before that was in Arkansas, also around Christmas a couple of years before. In both cases it was more than 10 over. That one from NH is the only one that has ever sullied my driving record, though. Plea bargains are good. :D
Oddly, despite having GPS calibrated the speedometer in every car I've owned (what can I say, I'm young enough for that to have been possible), literally zero of the times I have been pulled over have I been told that I was traveling at the speed I was actually traveling. More often they claim I was going faster than I really was by 3-4 mph and then tell me they're doing me a favor by writing it lower/giving me a warning/whatever. It seems that calibration of the radar/laser guns isn't done as regularly as it should be.
Quote from: nathanm on January 21, 2013, 12:59:56 PM
Oddly, despite having GPS calibrated the speedometer in every car I've owned (what can I say, I'm young enough for that to have been possible), literally zero of the times I have been pulled over have I been told that I was traveling at the speed I was actually traveling.
GPS is great at producing a timestamped record of your true speed.
If you dont already know how to download that data to your smartphone or laptop, it would be worth the trouble to learn.
Quote from: nathanm on January 21, 2013, 12:59:56 PM
It's pretty hard to get pulled over for less than 10 over.
That may be changing or maybe the town finances were a little low.
QuoteIt seems that calibration of the radar/laser guns isn't done as regularly as it should be.
Or perhaps as accurately. Many years ago, I met someone who calibrated police radar. He said he always made sure they were on the slow reading side of the tolerance band.
Quote from: nathanm on January 21, 2013, 12:59:56 PM
It's pretty hard to get pulled over for less than 10 over. OHP rarely writes tickets for it since they're worth no points. (or were, maybe that has changed?) I've gotten a few warnings for 6-10 over here in Oklahoma, but not any tickets yet. I've passed them going 6-10 over at least a hundred times at this point.
Last ticket I got was in New Hampshire back in 2006 a day or two before Christmas. The one before that was in Arkansas, also around Christmas a couple of years before. In both cases it was more than 10 over. That one from NH is the only one that has ever sullied my driving record, though. Plea bargains are good. :D
Oddly, despite having GPS calibrated the speedometer in every car I've owned (what can I say, I'm young enough for that to have been possible), literally zero of the times I have been pulled over have I been told that I was traveling at the speed I was actually traveling. More often they claim I was going faster than I really was by 3-4 mph and then tell me they're doing me a favor by writing it lower/giving me a warning/whatever. It seems that calibration of the radar/laser guns isn't done as regularly as it should be.
Or unless you've got a military-issued GPS yours might not be quite as accurate as a Garmin Nuvi. ;D
These things go on now & then from temp. money grants. It should end in a week or so. I wish they would get grants to fight crime instead.
Quote from: sauerkraut on January 22, 2013, 01:43:38 PM
These things go on now & then from temp. money grants. It should end in a week or so. I wish they would get grants to fight crime instead.
Derp. Derp. Derp.
Quote from: patric on January 21, 2013, 12:02:12 PM
One of the biggest reasons to have a radar detector these days is the Safety Warning System, a transmitter and messaging system capable of sending a wide range of emergency warnings to motorists using advanced radar detectors.
http://americancityandcounty.com/mag/government_radar_detectors_warn
The Safety Warning System will also provide a general warning to the estimated 20 million drivers using older radar detectors not capable of displaying text messages.
"The system will provide a sophisticated warning capability today and serve as a stepping stone to the systems of the future," he says.
The new generation of "smart," radar detectors includes a built-in liquid crystal display capable of displaying up to 64 characters. When such a detector receives a safety message, it first sounds a special tone to alert the driver before displaying the message.
A second message can also be sent and displayed along with the first. This allows the system to warn of a hazard while also alerting the driver of a reduced speed limit, for instance.
Because the transmitter also sends out microwave signals on the K band, drivers using older radar detectors would still be alerted to a traffic hazard, though they could not be told the specific nature of it.
Transmitters would be located on police and other emergency vehicles and on construction equipment, bridges, existing overhead sign warning systems and other fixed sites. Portable transmitters could also be moved to locations wherever needed.
Since 1991 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has allowed use of unattended radar transmitters to trigger radar detectors and thereby warn drivers of hazards ranging from highway construction zones to road maintenance. "At least two studies have shown that drone transmitters capable of setting off the current generation of radar detectors are effective at slowing traffic in construction zones," says Janice Lee, president of RADAR.
Forget using older detectors to find HPs since they mostly use lasers.
I have never once, ever received a SWS warning message on my Bel 935 or 995. However, all of the stupid construction signs that are 20 miles from any actual construction do spray out K-band all over the place on my drive to work. Surely this is exactly what they are intended to do: piss off people with radar detectors. Lucky I have my trusty mute button.
Quote from: Hoss on January 21, 2013, 08:01:50 AM
I got pulled over last year doing a left lane pass for seven over by the OHP. Got a warning, but that was all. On 169. Maybe the LEO on that highway could concentrate more on the dump trucks who don't cover their loads.
I cannot begin to tell you how much I agree with this. During one week of driving back and forth to work, I did enough damage to a windsheild that I needed to have it replaced. Unfortunately, it was in my FJ before there was an after market producer, $1500. Ugh. I wish they would also pass some type of law either keeping the dump trucks off the highway during rush hours, or make the left lane passenger car only. Nothing sends me over the edge more than having 3 dump trucks/semi's spread across the highway holding everyone else up.
Quote from: EricP on January 28, 2013, 01:27:09 AM
I have never once, ever received a SWS warning message on my Bel 935 or 995. However, all of the stupid construction signs that are 20 miles from any actual construction do spray out K-band all over the place on my drive to work. Surely this is exactly what they are intended to do: piss off people with radar detectors. Lucky I have my trusty mute button.
I remember all the portable (changeable-copy) construction signs had transmitters, along the
casino road widening project 244, but my detector wasnt an LCD variety, so while it appears Oklahoma is using
some of the SWS system to slow drivers down in construction zone, I cant confirm any of those transmitters are actually sending alphanumeric messages. Part of the system was intended to be backwards-compatible with older detectors, so we seemed to have adopted at least that much.
If nothing else, states adopting SWS for traffic safety deflates arguments that radar detectors are only useful to lawbreakers.
In spite of ODOT using SWS to slow people down at construction zones,
It's now illegal for truck drivers and CDL to:
1. Possess, operate or use a radar detector while operating or as a passenger in a commercial
motor vehicle;
2. Operate a commercial motor vehicle in which a radar detector is installed or present; or
3. Install or have installed a radar detector in a commercial motor vehicle.
NEW LAW: Title 47 O.S. 11-808.1 (Prohibits Radar Detector in a CMV)
Never mind this violates federal law (Federal Communication Act) and tramples on the FCC's authority,
but come on, this is 2013 not 1975,
and anything that slows down a semi approaching a construction zone is a lifesaver.
Remember this guy's highway hypnosis?
(http://www.tulsaworld.com/articleimages/2010/20100626_FatalityCrash0626.jpg)
With his cruise control set at 70, he plowed through cars stopped at a construction zone, and killed whole families.
That's 10 lives that could have been spared right there if the guy had a radar detector with Safety Warning System to wake him up.
Clearly our lawmakers are under some sort of direction that doesnt include using their heads.
Perhaps they don't know that radar detectors have safety warning detectors that wake them up. I didn't. Perhaps they don't expect CDL drivers to be sleeping on the highway. I don't either. I can't blame legislators for reacting. Cell phone laws might be next.
I am around a lot of CDL drivers both A and B. Many of them have long histories of OTR driving. All of them are astounded by what they see in drivers today. New driver training is abysmal because the older ones are retiring and the new training available is hurried and sloppy to fill the demand. The tester's are failing large numbers but many slip through. What we are seeing now is drivers using earphones connected to their cell phones so they can listen to music and make calls while driving. These are the smarter ones. Many just drive one handed through traffic which means they can't use their turn signals and their flashers to let others know what their intentions are. They might as well be DWI. I had a Loomis truck turn over in front of me last week early in the morning. It looked like he simply dozed off and hit the wall on a slight curve. I have felt the frustration, impatience and anger level of many of these drivers. There is no place for road rage in a tanker truck carrying 6000 gallons of fuel.
To complicate that, their employers are pressuring them into working (illegal) excessive hours. The driver carries the legal responsibility but if they don't agree to it, they get fired. Good trucking companies don't do this, but note the increase recently in new owners of fleets since trucking has exploded in the last few years.
Quote from: AquaMan on February 03, 2013, 02:46:59 PM
Perhaps they don't know that radar detectors have safety warning detectors that wake them up. I didn't. Perhaps they don't expect CDL drivers to be sleeping on the highway. I don't either. I can't blame legislators for reacting. Cell phone laws might be next.
I am around a lot of CDL drivers both A and B. Many of them have long histories of OTR driving. All of them are astounded by what they see in drivers today. New driver training is abysmal because the older ones are retiring and the new training available is hurried and sloppy to fill the demand. The tester's are failing large numbers but many slip through. What we are seeing now is drivers using earphones connected to their cell phones so they can listen to music and make calls while driving. These are the smarter ones. Many just drive one handed through traffic which means they can't use their turn signals and their flashers to let others know what their intentions are. They might as well be DWI. I had a Loomis truck turn over in front of me last week early in the morning. It looked like he simply dozed off and hit the wall on a slight curve. I have felt the frustration, impatience and anger level of many of these drivers. There is no place for road rage in a tanker truck carrying 6000 gallons of fuel.
To complicate that, their employers are pressuring them into working (illegal) excessive hours. The driver carries the legal responsibility but if they don't agree to it, they get fired. Good trucking companies don't do this, but note the increase recently in new owners of fleets since trucking has exploded in the last few years.
Trucking has exploded in the last few years? I think you need to recheck your sources. In around 2009 the industry dropped hard with the economy, and still has been struggling to recover. It's finally starting to get revived to the point that the drivers can make a living at it again and not sitting for weeks waiting on a load or deadheading two states over, but it is far from exploding. (And fyi, I come from a family of truck drivers, though very few have been able to stay with it for the last few years, so this is really first hand knowledge on my part.)
Quote from: patric on February 03, 2013, 11:55:37 AM
Clearly our lawmakers are under some sort of direction that doesn't include using their heads.
Sally Kern
Mary Fallin
Jim Inhofe
Quote from: AquaMan on February 03, 2013, 02:46:59 PM
Perhaps they don't know that radar detectors have safety warning detectors that wake them up. I didn't. Perhaps they don't expect CDL drivers to be sleeping on the highway. I don't either. I can't blame legislators for reacting.
Perhaps they are just handed the text of a bill and are told "If you author this, we'll make sure you dont look soft on crime come re-election" which alleviates any necessity to actually think.
Quote from: custosnox on February 03, 2013, 08:04:22 PM
(And fyi, I come from a family of truck drivers, though very few have been able to stay with it for the last few years, so this is really first hand knowledge on my part.)
AquaMan does not accept second hand information.
Quote from: custosnox on February 03, 2013, 08:04:22 PM
Trucking has exploded in the last few years? I think you need to recheck your sources. In around 2009 the industry dropped hard with the economy, and still has been struggling to recover. It's finally starting to get revived to the point that the drivers can make a living at it again and not sitting for weeks waiting on a load or deadheading two states over, but it is far from exploding. (And fyi, I come from a family of truck drivers, though very few have been able to stay with it for the last few years, so this is really first hand knowledge on my part.)
Trucking companies Custo. Everyone dropped hard in 2009 but trucking in general is long term strong. Truckers, though, are screwed and always have been. They are led to believe that its a bonanza, especially if you own your own truck, but few do well. The companies however are sitting on growth from internet sales and low cost imports from Mexico and Canada. Note the proliferation of companies on your next trip to OKC on the turnpike. Used to be just a few big names, now its WalMart, UPS, Braums, and lots of no names.
Quote from: rdj on February 04, 2013, 11:11:52 AM
AquaMan does not accept second hand information.
I discount it greatly. Sorry if I hurt your feelings. No, not really.
I work with 30 other employees. 20 of them are ex-truckers with big trucker mouths. I travel with them and they share first hand stories. I listen and discount them too.
Quote from: patric on February 03, 2013, 10:27:52 PM
Perhaps they are just handed the text of a bill and are told "If you author this, we'll make sure you dont look soft on crime come re-election" which alleviates any necessity to actually think.
You either know some of them or the lobbyists who drink with them, don't you? ;)
Quote from: custosnox on February 03, 2013, 08:04:22 PM
Trucking has exploded in the last few years? I think you need to recheck your sources. In around 2009 the industry dropped hard with the economy, and still has been struggling to recover. It's finally starting to get revived to the point that the drivers can make a living at it again and not sitting for weeks waiting on a load or deadheading two states over, but it is far from exploding. (And fyi, I come from a family of truck drivers, though very few have been able to stay with it for the last few years, so this is really first hand knowledge on my part.)
http://www.crgraphs.com/2011/09/transportation-graphs.html
Chart 2 shows intermodal - semi-trailer hauled by train. Chart 4 shows ATA truck tonnage info. Maybe not "exploding" but the trucking companies are doing as well as they ever have, while drivers are getting screwed pretty much as they always have - maybe worse. One of the companies I drove for in the past was really into putting forward the idea that they were a Christian company (even putting a reference in their name - Covenant) but when it came down to the reality, they lied like most. Cheated the drivers out of plenty of money. Push drivers to drive with illegal loads - local companies are particularly bad about that, since there are few scales in this state. If you see one of the local company trucks pulling 3 trailers, you can bet - and be virtually assured of winning - that the load is WAY over limit. To the tune of 125,000 to 150,000 lbs gross. And pushed the drivers to drive illegally - and punished those who wouldn't. Business as usual for the industry.
There are good companies, but very few. Ask the family members if they can tell you who the good ones are. We can compare notes later....
And AquaMan is dead on right about the "amateur hour" on the interstates of the current level of driver training. It is unbelievably bad. Having said that, we have a shining example of a great driver training school right here in Oklahoma. It is exceptional!! Central Tech Truck Driver Training school. I know several graduates - all of them very good drivers.
Quote from: AquaMan on February 04, 2013, 01:57:18 PM
I discount it greatly. Sorry if I hurt your feelings. No, not really.
I work with 30 other employees. 20 of them are ex-truckers with big trucker mouths. I travel with them and they share first hand stories. I listen and discount them too.
I wouldn't discount them completely. They wrap it in a lot of sensationalism, but I bet there is a lot of truth within those layers of BS. Probably at least mildly entertaining, too, aren't they??