# Photo radar question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 30, 2007, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989 "2007-06-30T00:07:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2007, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989/41 "2007-07-09T18:30:29Z")

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[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq]  
Or perhaps the City hopes to make the point that the speed limit isn’t as “ludicrously low” as you think it is? 😉  
[/QUOTE]

The responsible authority should put the limit at the 85th to 90th percentile speed, unless there’s something in that stretch the explicitly merits a lower limit. Since **commasense** didn’t say otherwise, it sounds like revenue generation to me. Hey! Maybe that the explicit reason for meriting a lower limit! 😛

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**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\
**Post date:** [July 10, 2007, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989/42 "2007-07-10T00:51:21Z")

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[QUOTE=commasense]  
Me and everyone else entering or leaving the city on this [six-lane major artery](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=New+York+Avenue,+NE,+Washington,+DC&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=46.36116,82.265625&ie=UTF8&ll=38.911005,-76.997734&spn=0.005593,0.010042&t=k&z=17&om=1). This is almost precisely where I got the ticket. No one does 35 mph there, in either direction.  
[/QUOTE]

Well, given that that photo alone shows one major curb cut for a large area of businesses, at least one of which involves tractor trailers, and there are other smaller curb cuts as well, perhaps they have it at 35 for a reason? 😛

But I’m not going to debate speed limits; that can be done in GD. 😃

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**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\
**Post date:** [July 10, 2007, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989/43 "2007-07-10T13:37:44Z")

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All right, Mr. Northeastern-Ohio-defender-of-DC-traffic-bureaucrats, tell you what. Next time you come to Washington, give me a call. You can take a break from sightseeing for an hour and you and I will go to that block on New York Avenue. We’ll each have a roll of quarters, and every time we see a car going faster than 35 mph, you’ll give me a quarter. Every time we see a car going at or below 35 (that’s not stopped or slowed for a light or traffic) I’ll give you a quarter. I predict I’ll have your $10 in less than five minutes. 😃

I’m not saying that the traffic officials may not have a _rationale_ for 35, but no one observes it and, as **Balthisar** said, I think the biggest reason for not making the speed limit more realistic is the money they make on the speed trap.

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**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\
**Post date:** [July 10, 2007, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-radar-question/409989/44 "2007-07-10T14:06:42Z")

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\<giggle\> Um, well, given that we are talking about DC, I’m not gonna argue the point. :eek:

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