Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Police Speed Traps
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March 2, 2015 at 2:19 am #816867
goodisgreatMemberIs it me, or do West Seattlelites get issued an inordinate amount of speeding tickets? I am a cautious, law abiding, tax paying, speed compliant driver. I have been driving for 39 years. I have lived in various areas of the city. WS has been a ticket nightmare for me. Just got a 43 in a 30, going up admiral way. have you tried to go up admiral way at 30? I drive a Prius and it is chugging along at that speed, and cars fly around me. I was driving 45 on the incline after the main span of the WS bridge, and others were flying up on me. Im trying to keep at the speed limit or under, and I had a charger with Oregon plates flash brights in my rear view mirror, and then fly up on my side and I thought he was brandishing a weapon, but it was only his middle finger. He held that aggressive pose the entire time he was passing me, looking as if the rage he was experiencing might induce a heart attack.
I live on 35th and Brandon. This area is posted 35 MPH. Admiral is 30. You only know its 30, as there is a little itty bitty sign posted at the off ramp from the bridge, to admiral.
Just wondering if anyone else out there ever feels like we are crawling, when we obey the MPH signs, and the police prey on those up us, who are pushed along by the others aggressive drivers?
I also have been informed that the Mayor is lowering the speed limits around the city. Talk about anxiety attacks and heart conditions….are we in the early 20th Century, with horse and buggy?
please help me out here…
thanks.
March 2, 2015 at 3:08 am #822424
JanSParticipantreally doesn’t matter. Admiral speed limit is 30…and, yes, I do it all the time, so it can be done. You just have to pay attention. If they had wanted you to go 40-45 or higher, as some do, then they would have made it that way. Downshift.
The driver from Oregon should have gotten a ticket. If someone flashes their lights at me, too bad. They can go around me.
This has nothing to do with horse and buggy…it has to do with what things are…and until they change it, you will get a ticket for going 43 on Admiral Hill if you’re caught.Hope the ticket wasn’t too great (btw, I learned my lesson a few years ago going 40 on the downhill on Admiral)
The same applies to those who go 50+ mph on the westbound Spokane Street viaduct. Just because they would like it to be faster doesn’t mean it should be
March 2, 2015 at 6:40 am #822425
datamuseParticipantYou can’t downshift in a Prius. It has a CVT. (That said, I go 30 on Admiral in mine all the time.)
March 2, 2015 at 2:00 pm #822426
anonymeParticipantIf anything, there is a lack of speed enforcement in West Seattle (and probably elsewhere). These are residential neighborhoods – not freeways. I’m glad to hear that at least some speeders are getting tickets. And it’s not the make of the vehicle that makes it difficult to obey the speed limit – it’s the foot on the gas pedal.
March 2, 2015 at 3:15 pm #822427
Robert2715ParticipantMy stress reducer for uphill Admiral is to just put on the cruise control (30-35 range) and let the “I gotta go faster than you” types cruise on by. Since Admiral is not a divided Highway, the left lane passing rules doesn’t apply.
March 2, 2015 at 4:52 pm #822428
JTBParticipantgoodisgreat, you’re not the first to feel the posted speed limit on Admiral is slow. Nor are you the first to get nailed for violating it. I think the police show up there periodically to remind people to observe the speed limit. I’ve never checked into it, but I suspect the small number of residential drive entrances along the incline have something to do with why it’s 30mph rather than 35 or 40 which I think would be reasonable were it not for the multiple entrances.
March 2, 2015 at 6:23 pm #822429
skeeterParticipantI’ve been driving in West Seattle 8 years and have never been issued a ticket – nor have I even been pulled over. So I don’t think there are an “inordinate” number of tickets being issued, at least in my experience. OP – my guess is you either have really bad luck or you are exceeding the speed limit on a regular basis.
I guess I’m sort of confused by your post. You say you get a lot of speeding tickets. And you also say you are a “law abiding” and “speed compliant” driver. Are you saying that the police are issuing speeding tickets to you even though you are driving at/below the speed limit?
March 3, 2015 at 12:12 am #822430
KBearParticipantRobert, the keep right rule isn’t just for divided highways. It applies any time there are 2 or more lanes in the same direction, so Admiral Way would be an example of this.
March 3, 2015 at 1:00 am #822431
SmittyParticipantKBear, you are correct. but I have a big problem with that going “down” Admiral and heading East or West on the SSV.
If you vacate the left lane heading down Admiral you stand a chance of never getting back in the left lane before the bridge! People speed so fast that you would either have to:
a) Speed up (thus breaking the law) in order to merge in.
b) Cut in at 30 and risk being rear-ended.
Same goes for the SSV.
And trust me, I am a “left lane is for passing” guy.
March 3, 2015 at 3:30 am #822432
seaopgalParticipantI’ve been driving in WS for nearly 30 years, and like Skeeter have never been pulled over or ticketed. Know the common emphasis patrols (Admiral, 35th, bus lane on bridge (never actually heard of anyone being pulled over on the bridge for speeding, just for driving in bus lane)), ignore the idiots, obey school zone laws/lights, assume a 5 mph buffer elsewhere, and you’ll live long and prosper. Or drive 13 mph over the limit and take your lumps.
March 3, 2015 at 4:25 am #822433
justadumbguyParticipantRobert,
like you I’ve also found the cruise control to be the big de-stresser going up the hill.
Smitty,
yep agree with you about heading down the hill, especially during the busier times of day.
March 3, 2015 at 4:51 am #822434
GreystreetParticipantgoodisgreat, while I have only received a speeding ticket for going 22mph in a school zone after I had passed the school itself (I get it everyone there are posted signs of where the zone starts and stops) … it’s only going to get worse with them reducing the speed on “I-35” to 30mph, a four lane roadway that is a main arterial to a neighborhood of a city with thousands of people in it that have to get on and off the peninsula … I guess cruise control is the way to go though, I appreciate that because I’m often wondering how to get my truck to keep those speeds, thanks guys! … goodisgreat, I suppose we just have to endure, I’m just glad I didn’t buy a 5 speed…
March 3, 2015 at 7:12 am #822435
JulieMember…or we could do this: http://www.wired.com/2010/12/swedish-speed-camera-pays-drivers-to-slow-down/
March 3, 2015 at 2:14 pm #822436
anonymeParticipant“I-35” is not an arterial going TO a neighborhood, it is an arterial going THROUGH a neighborhood. It makes a difference. This is not a commercial corridor; it’s a place where people live – and if they are very brave, or have a death wish, they occasionally try to cross the street.
Reality check: if you’re driving 35th from the Junction to Roxbury (about 15 minutes) and you drop your speed from 35 to 30 mph, you lose about 1 minute. If that is too onerous a burden – get help.
March 4, 2015 at 8:30 am #822437
GreystreetParticipantActually, 35th does go “TO” many neighborhoods and “THROUGH” several, living in Arbor Heights, I consider it both a “byway” and a “Thruway” … A 4 lane roadway at 30mph is simply ludicrous when you consider the density … whatever, I have my opinions and the “old guard” of this blog will always disagree with me, cheers :)
March 4, 2015 at 4:29 pm #822438
dobroParticipant“I appreciate that because I’m often wondering how to get my truck to keep those speeds, thanks guys!”
I always wonder when I see these speed trap/speed limit threads how long it will take until someone suggests that their car/truck just can’t be controlled and refuses to travel at these “horse and buggy” limits. Usually doesn’t take long.
A couple of suggestions for your truck-enjoy your lower gears and feel the hum of those lower gear chakras vibrating your chassis at a perfect 30mph. Ahhhh. Tip for the driver- leave 5 minutes earlier for your destination and enjoy the scenery as you still reach your destination on time.
PS am I one of the old guard or am I just passing thru?
March 4, 2015 at 5:36 pm #822439
seaopgalParticipantAnd this next song goes out to Dobro, with love from Old Guard:
“Well it’s a strange old game – you learn it slow
One step forward and it’s back to go
You’re standing on the throttle
You’re standing on the breaks
In the groove ’til you make a mistake
Sometimes you’re the windshield
Sometimes you’re the bug … “
March 4, 2015 at 6:49 pm #822440
skeeterParticipantDobro makes a good point about downshifting to manage speeds on downhills. Unless you’re driving Uncle Jesse’s 1975 pickup with the two-speed hydromatic transmission drivers should have plenty of gear ratios to control speeds on a descent. Let’s use our gears folks! A modern automatic has 6+ gear ratios to choose from. The new Bentley unveiled yesterday has 10 gears.
March 4, 2015 at 7:08 pm #822441
ErikParticipantIf you need help dealing with anxiety, or how to live in a sometimes violent world with grace and profound support, or at least becoming more comfortable with crawling; may I suggest a visit to your local Feldenkrais Prax.
March 4, 2015 at 7:54 pm #822442
wakefloodParticipantHey Skeets, your post reminded me of a question posed in the “tech” section of a Road & Track I read a few years back. That being, is it better for the car to brake on downhills or downshift to control speed.
I’ll paraphrase here to say the answer came down to one of risk/cost mitigation.
Downshifting, whilst made easy by the multiple gears/VSTs that almost all cars have now DOES still cause significant wear and tear on the transmission if done frequently over time. Braking does the same thing to the shoes/calipers but – and here’s the answer they went with – the cost of replacing shoes more frequently pencils out to be a smaller hit over the life of the car versus a significant transmission issue/replacement over the same period.
Basically, they said, riding the brakes is more cost-effective. Who knew?
March 4, 2015 at 8:02 pm #822443
datamuseParticipant30 mph is awfully fast for a horse, particularly one pulling a conveyance, and not sustainable for more than a mile or two.
I’m in favor of reducing the number of lanes on 35th, personally.
March 4, 2015 at 9:34 pm #822444
skeeterParticipantWake you bring up an interesting point. This being the WSB forums lets proceed to jack this thread further.
Most folks agree that downshifting to slow a vehicle is a poor choice. The wear on the transmission is more costly than the wear on the brakes.
However – I think the context of this is slowing a car for, say, a stop sign. Shifting from 5th to 4th to 3rd to 2nd to 1st is a lot of wear on the transmission.
However – if you are on a long (1/2 mile plus) descent I think it’s better to go ahead and downshift once to an appropriate lower gear so the engine holds you back a bit (and the driver will have better control on the car.) So you are only backshifting once and then benefitting from that lower gear for an extended period of time.
I drive a manual transmission car. I use the brake to stop me. But on a long descent I always backshift once to a lower gear.
I dunno – I could be wrong.
The new manual transmission Corvette has a neat feature. When downshifting from, say, 5th to 3rd, a computer will “blip” the throttle to match the revs when re-engaging the clutch. That minimizes strain on the transmission and drivetrain.
March 4, 2015 at 10:31 pm #822445
wsn00bParticipantskeeter: on older manual transmissions a “heel-toe” throttle blip while downshifting works well too (takes some more practice and skill).
BTW: next generation cars (i.e electric cars) are gearless and make other “modern” cars feel like horse drawn buggies.
If everybody drove manuals and as a result paid more attention to driving and proper distance/pacing we’d have no highway congestion, even in rush hour – primarily caused by automatic drivers riding the brakes and the bumper of the car in front.
I digress.
For the original post, I’ve started to notice speed traps under the bridge on the way to the lower bridge and on 99 NB (where the limit should really be 60 instead of the retarded 40 mph limit).
March 5, 2015 at 12:44 am #822446
JTBParticipantI was driving on Elliott Avenue today—speed limit 30 mph. As for Admiral hill, I assume that is because of many entrances to the roadway, but in this case from businesses rather than residences.
March 5, 2015 at 8:13 am #822447
JanSParticipantI’m fascinated….some people who post here have those new cars that take over the driving (and control) for you. You just sit back and let it do what it wants, like go 15 miles over the speed limit on Admiral Way..because , yep, it wants to, and there is simply no slowin’ it down…
my car is older…I still have control of it…guess I’m lucky – no tickies for me, huh :D
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