Washington Traffic Law Blog : Washington Traffic Lawyer & Attorney : Jon Zimmerman Law Firm : Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma

Earlier this week Seattle Times reporter Danny Westneat wrote about his frustration and how his driving habits have changed--for the worse--since Seattle decided to put up red-light cameras.

Since drivers call me daily to talk about red-light camera traffic tickets that motorists have received in the mail (and no one has called me happy to have received such a gift), it is important to note that a red-light camera traffic ticket has no effect on insurance premiums, although if a driver is stopped by a police officer and cited for a red light violation, this latter type of violation does have consequences to insurance costs.

Seattle joins other cities like Auburn, Bellevue, Bremerton, Burien, Federal Way, Fife, Issaquah, Lacey, Lake Forest Park, Lakewood, Lynnwood, Monroe, Moses Lake, Puyallup, Renton, Seatac, Spokane, Tacoma, and Wenatchee in having some form of automated traffic camera devices.

Westneat makes many good observations (more after the jump).

Continue Reading...

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (5)
• Trackbacks

Recently the Washington Department of Transportation released data collected January 1 - March 31, 2007, that ranked the top locations for vehicles moving faster than 90 MPH based on the highest number of vehicles traveling 90 MPH or quicker. Of the top 10 locations, 6 of them were in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties, in places including Issaquah, Fife, Seattle, and Tacoma. It is unknown whether every inch of state highway was tested, or whether western Washington was specifically targeted, or whether the top locations have a higher number of vehicles traveling 90 or over because more cars cross that area or if the vehicles traveling 90 or over actually amount to a higher percentage of speeding cars versus all cars that are traveling a given section of roadway. What is clear is that the State Patrol is stepping up enforcement (this means speeding tickets and other citations for traffic offenses such as negligent driving and reckless driving) in areas that it believes has a higher number of vehicles that speed.  This makes economic sense for the State Patrol - after all, the more tickets issued, there is arguably a better chance at committed findings and fines, all other things being equal. It is best for drivers to take notice of these stepped-up enforcement locations and if the unfortunate happens and you get a traffic ticket, give me a call, I can help.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks