# Has anyone noticed a large increase in police pulling people over lately? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 15, 2009, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904 "2009-10-15T13:58:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SanibelMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/41 "2009-10-18T13:53:44Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > We have a straight open 5-mile stretch of 4-lane Interstate posted at 65 mph. (40/64 through Gumbo Flats for the locals). > > I normally drive 85 through there and am barely keeping up with traffic. Once in awhile I’m going 90 & somebody passes me by 10+ mph. Sorry, I’m only a semi-local to St. Louis (and since moved away) but are you talking about the stretch between Olive and the river, with the mile-long strip mall? Because that is definitely the biggest speeding temptation I’ve seen outside of Alligator Alley in Florida. I’ve caught myself doing 85+ once or twice through there. I’ve only been in Madison since January, so I can’t tell if it’s unusual, but at least a few times a month I can see 3 or more cop cars on my 15-minute drive from I-94/151 to the Beltline at Fish Hatch. I got pulled over a few weeks ago by a motorcycle cop on the Stoughton Road overpass for going 70, but I’m not sure I was going that fast. But the strange thing was, he didn’t ask me any questions… It was just, “You were speeding. License? (give it to him) Be right back.” He must have been in a hurry to make some more money. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/42 "2009-10-18T14:34:04Z")
I’ll be visting Cleveland shortly and was warned by someone I spoke to there that Ohio has stepped up their speeding enforcement recently, which has always been more strict than any of the states I drive through anyway. So that should be a ton of fun. Thank Og for cruise control. ---
**Author:** ![UncleNito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/7cd45c/32.png) [@UncleNito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleNito)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/43 "2009-10-18T14:50:26Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > I’ll be visting Cleveland shortly and was warned by someone I spoke to there that Ohio has stepped up their speeding enforcement recently, which has always been more strict than any of the states I drive through anyway. So that should be a ton of fun. Thank Og for cruise control. Which way are you going? I’ve always found that I-71 between Columbus and Cleveland is pretty much devoid of state troopers. OTOH, 271 is definitely a toll road for the Lake County suburbs. Stay off the express lanes if you want to go fast. There’s more traffic on the local lanes, but also fewer townie cops (maybe because they figure people there are more likely to show up to fight the ticket). I hope this information is still good when I head up there next weekend. The real irony of the cops-as-tax-collectors model is that it creates perverse incentives with respect to safety. I’ve always found that I can go as fast I please when it’s raining or otherwise crappy outside. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/44 "2009-10-18T14:54:30Z")
> [@UncleNito](#): > > Which way are you going? I’ve always found that I-71 between Columbus and Cleveland is pretty much devoid of state troopers. OTOH, 271 is definitely a toll road for the Lake County suburbs. Stay off the express lanes if you want to go fast. There’s more traffic on the local lanes, but also fewer townie cops (maybe because they figure people there are more likely to show up to fight the ticket). > > I hope this information is still good when I head up there next weekend. > > The real irony of the cops-as-tax-collectors model is that it creates perverse incentives with respect to safety. I’ve always found that I can go as fast I please when it’s raining or otherwise crappy outside. Oddly enough, the only place I’ve ever been pulled over for speeding in Ohio is on I-71 between Cleveland and Columbus. Got away with warnings, though, and that was ages ago as well. I-271 will indeed be part of my trip - I’ll be all over that thing like white on rice for about 5 days. ---
**Author:** ![janeslogin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/45 "2009-10-18T15:54:21Z")
A news story claims, I don’t know if one can believe a single news story as even the multiple accounts are sometimes wrong, but anyway, a news story claims there has been a surge in traffic stops in Maricopa County AZ recently. ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/46 "2009-10-18T16:26:34Z")
In Pittsburgh, most definitely - especially on the signs that say “no turn on red from X-X” People would do so within an hour or so, but now they’re getting pulled over for it. Even more striking is the number of parking tickets - around the library and university it’s incredible, checked multiple times a day, and ticketed for your bumper sticking out inches beyond the pole, etc. Also, it’s noteworthy that in the 3 1/2 years I’ve lived in the area, there have been few (and now, absolutely zero) tickets issued to the area containing a check cashing center and (nearly exclusively) black bars, in spite of the fact that many large SUV’s are parked erratically, in areas clearly marked no parking. It actually makes turning onto the street fairly difficult and dangerous, but they’re never ticketed or booted. Why ticket people who’ll never pay them anyways? It’s much easier to nickel and dime students and university personnel. ---
**Author:** ![pabstist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e99b99/32.png) [@pabstist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pabstist)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/47 "2009-10-18T23:57:27Z")
I got pulled over last night AFTER I pulled into my driveway. My license plate light was out, and I just got a warning. So whatever, my bad. But since it’s leaf peeper season here in Vermont, listening to the police scanner, lots more tourists are getting pulled over. I don’t think the cops are puling over more people, I just think that there are more people to pull over. Does that make sense? ---
**Author:** ![randy054](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/54ee81/32.png) [@randy054](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randy054)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904/48 "2009-10-19T00:10:32Z")
Saint Paul, MN here. Yep, big increase on my morning and evening commute, along 94W and highway 61. Was just mentioning this to my coworkers a couple weeks ago who also noticed the same thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-noticed-a-large-increase-in-police-pulling-people-over-lately/513904.md?page=2)