Skier speed trap hell

[VTKilarney]

Police in Bridgewater, on VT Route 4, issued over 2,300 tickets last year. Oh, and the 25 mph school zone doesn’t even have a school.

http://www.wcax.com/content/news/Vermonts-top-speed-trap-is-a-defunct-school-zone-480793251.html

 

[caribchakita]

Right outside Woodstock, 12:25 AM, heading to K'Ton, foggy night, $185 ticket for 35 in 25 zone. I disputed it because radar equipment is flawed in fog. No luck

https://www.speedtrap.org/vermont/woodstock/

 

[drjeff]

Arguably the most well known, and frequently with a police car stationed speed trap in all of New England ski country....

I've learned to set the cruise at 24 when going through there...

 

[gregnye]

There's also another "speed trap town" on route 100, on the way from Okemo to killington, right at 100A in Plymouth.

Basically unless you come from the north, there's a "speed trap town" no matter how you get to K.

Overall both of these speed trap towns are dumb. If people traveled the speed limit in Vermont, you would never get anywhere. So naturally people go around 5mph over. These speed trap towns just add unpredictability to the road. You don't know whether you should actually slow down to 25mph because of a dangerous curve or if its just a random speed set by some local farmers who want to fund their police department.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Plymouth and Chester both qualify as speed traps.

Just obey the speed limits going through those 2 sections, drive at 10/10ths the rest of the time. I can see getting upset if you didn't know about the speed traps, but the speed limits ARE posted clearly, and anyone familiar with the drive really has no excuse.

I've only personally had good/helpful experiences with Vermont cops to and from skiing... in some ways I'm glad they are there, even the speed traps, because if they weren't there let's be honest, half of us would just drive 90mph on Route 100 and similar roads the entire time.

I get more upset at that one slow Vermont driver who won't pull over to the side with a line of 15 cars behind him/her.

Also shouldn't speed too much going through downtown Ludlow.

 

[ss20]

The whole route from 91S to Killington is awful. Chester, Ludlow, and Plymouth. The Plymouth cop was not as prevalent as usual this year...I only saw him stationed ~half the times I went to K this year. In a normal year I'd see him 9/10 times I went through Plymouth...and that is not exaggerating at all.

What I don't understand is how the state lets local cops nab you for doing 40mph in a 35mp, but lets people do 70mph on all the rural areas of the state roads. I'm not complaining...60-70mph is my cruising speed on the VT roads I know well (100, 9, 11, 30). But I NEVER see state cops or local cops posted wherever the speed limit is 50mph. Only in the towns.

I've also noticed the state has relaxed on the Route 7 highway up through Rutland. That's become pretty dangerous when you have one guy trying to do 80mph passing right at the end of the truck lane....then in the single-lane parts they try to pass 3 cars by going in the oncoming lane.

 

[ss20]

I've only personally had good/helpful experiences with Vermont cops to and from skiing... in some ways I'm glad they are there, even the speed traps, because if they weren't there let's be honest, half of us would just drive 90mph on Route 100 and similar roads the entire time.

I got pulled over in VT this year for a headlight being out. No ticket...no paperwork...nothing. Just a verbal "get it fixed before you drive at night again". Total opposite of what they'd do in CT. "Fill this form, you have 72 hours to get it fixed, go to a police station, blah blah blah..."

 

[BenedictGomez]

Police in Bridgewater, on VT Route 4, issued over 2,300 tickets last year. Oh, and the 25 mph school zone doesn’t even have a school.

This is the most Vermont story ever.

 

[Domeskier]

I get more upset at that one slow Vermont driver who won't pull over to the side with a line of 15 cars behind him/her.

I like to strictly obey the ridiculous posted limits when there's a car with VT plates behind me. Anyone who lives in one of those towns should be ashamed of themselves.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

What I don't understand is how the state lets local cops nab you for doing 40mph in a 35mp, but lets people do 70mph on all the rural areas of the state roads. I'm not complaining...60-70mph is my cruising speed on the VT roads I know well (100, 9, 11, 30). But I NEVER see state cops or local cops posted wherever the speed limit is 50mph. Only in the towns.

I mean, in addition to bagging skiers with out of state plates as easy revenue from non taxpayers, it also makes total sense for the cops to be posted up in the towns from a pure safety perspective. route 100 goes from what is essentially a high speed road to a small town main street, over and over again. the cops are in the towns to make sure you aren't mowing down kids and pedestrians. they don't care what you do on long empty stretches of 50 mph limit

 

[ThinkSnow]

I mean, in addition to bagging skiers with out of state plates as easy revenue from non taxpayers, it also makes total sense for the cops to be posted up in the towns from a pure safety perspective. route 100 goes from what is essentially a high speed road to a small town main street, over and over again. the cops are in the towns to make sure you aren't mowing down kids and pedestrians. they don't care what you do on long empty stretches of 50 mph limit

Its nice to see some motorist respect when passing through small towns on the way to a ski destination......considering most posters on this forum call parts of VT their "home" ski areas....while having out of state plates.

 

[Smellytele]

Go speed through a town in CT, NY or NJ where the speed limit is 30. Plow over your own kids not the "farmers' children" in VT.

Although the school zone with no school anymore is pretty stupid.

 

[HowieT2]

This is the most Vermont story ever.

right, because this doesnt happen in every state. Going tomorrow to contest a ticket I got on my way back from plattekil in March.

 

[Smellytele]

right, because this doesnt happen in every state. Going tomorrow to contest a ticket I got on my way back from plattekil in March.

Does NY still give you a ticket that you have to mail in then they mail it back to you with what you owe and you have to mail it back to them again. Very efficient system.

 

[Ol Dirty Noodle]

Does NY still give you a ticket that you have to mail in then they mail it back to you with what you owe and you have to mail it back to them again. Very efficient system.

Yes

 

[mister moose]

I've been stopped on Rte 103 by a Statie, it doesn't have to be in a small town.

(I forget why he stopped me, might have been a light out. He then asked if I'd been drinking, and I volunteered I had a beer with dinner an hour ago. So he asks me to blow into his breathalyzer, and I'm thinking, "What is the upside to saying yes?" Apparently it's a trip to the station. So, fine, I'll risk using some untuned piece of equipment on 1 beer. Ha! I blow a 0.0)

Anyway, in the case of Plymouth, and decades of driving through, I have never seen a child. Ever. 3pm, 7pm, 10pm. Even people on the road are non existent. I see a few people in their yard, that's it. That said I don't have a problem slowing down driving through, but the strong arm ever present sheriff with the cash register pen is over the top. The hours of the cop are NOT the hours children are on the road (if there are any children there) The hours the cop is running the sting is when ski traffic is driving. Let's state the obvious here.

Woodstock (don't be 2 mph over)
Bridgewater
Mendon
Plymouth
Ludlow (lesser extent)
Chester (Town, Stone Village and the Depot)

Just recognize those towns enforce heavily and drive appropriately. I find Woodstock and Ludlow so crammed with cars, people, dogs, bicycles, grannies, gawkers, left turners, and parking spot hunters that you can only drive 5 under anyway in the downtown area. Of course that's not where they hand out tickets, they do it right past the sign where the speed drops.

Other than Woodstock, 5 over doesn't get a second glance.

And folks, if you insist on doing the exact speed limit with a line of cars behind you, check your speedometer. Many read high, and you're driving slow. (Drive exactly 60 for exactly 5 miles on 91 using the mile-markers. Use a stopwatch. It's on your cell phone if you don't own one. Anything over 5:00 minutes and you're slow.)

 

[MEtoVTSkier]

There are pretty accurate speedometer apps out there for your phone to check against your speedometer.

 

[Glenn]

Police in Bridgewater, on VT Route 4, issued over 2,300 tickets last year. Oh, and the 25 mph school zone doesn’t even have a school.

http://www.wcax.com/content/news/Vermonts-top-speed-trap-is-a-defunct-school-zone-480793251.html

This is beyond crazy. Why is this allowed?

If there's one reason to look forward to self driving cars; it'll eliminate chicken$hit tickets like these.

I use Waze whenever I drive. The stretch of 91 from Northampton to the VT line is very heavily patrolled during ski season. 9 times out of 10, it's an out of stater that's pulled over.

 

[mister moose]

There are pretty accurate speedometer apps out there for your phone to check against your speedometer.

Would these be the same apps that show you wandering a squiggly line in the trees when riding the lift, and show 81mph from a guy not wearing a speed suit on a blue slope?

 

[ss20]

This is beyond crazy. Why is this allowed?

If there's one reason to look forward to self driving cars; it'll eliminate chicken$hit tickets like these.

I use Waze whenever I drive. The stretch of 91 from Northampton to the VT line is very heavily patrolled during ski season. 9 times out of 10, it's an out of stater that's pulled over.

I-91 in Mass is terrible in general with cops posted everywhere and some hide really good.

Of course...in my home state of Connecticut I'm used to seeing one State trooper on the interstate a month, tops. Enforcement of any road rules is a total joke. The section of 84 between Waterbury and Harford where it's supposedly a 55mph limit cracks me up the most. Do less than 70mph and you'll get run over.