UAL Pilots Sentenced to Jail Time in Glasgow

guywhoflies said:
Is that USAirways guy in PHX still racking up speeding tickets from the traffic cameras only to beat them in court because they can't prove it is him driving since he is always wearing an animal mask? Sorry for the run on sentence, but damn I loved that story from when I lived out there.
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You didn't mention that they were -speed- cameras. I didn't think those were even remotely legal in this country.

Holy crap.

Anyway, I'm totally 100% with the dude (and his masked accomplices.)

If they tried to put those in where I grew up, they'd be shot out within a week. (I hope)

-Fox
 
FlyingAccountant said:
They're still all over the place in the Phoenix area.
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Yes. Still in numerous municipalities there. Be they speed camera only, red light cameras, or combo speed/red light cams. The speed cams that used to be on the state highways are gone. But a bunch of others still exist.

Acrofox said:
If they tried to put those in where I grew up, they'd be shot out within a week. (I hope)

-Fox
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One guy already tried that in 2009 against a photo radar camera vehicle that was a fully-marked state police vehicle that the state was operating in AZ on the Phoenix freeways. Shot and killed the 51yr old unit operator contractor who was sitting in the vehicle at the time.

Luckily, the murderer was caught.

Indiscriminate use of firearms is never a good thing, no matter what for.
 
Acrofox said:
Heinous. The worst part about all of these speed cameras / red light cameras is that they're almost always operated by a third-party company for profit. So the 'revenue' collected is often heavily overstated, at best.

-Fox
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That is a big problem, and a large reason many have been getting removed and contracts for them
not renewed in a number of municipalities here.
 
MikeD said:
Yes. Still in numerous municipalities there. Be they speed camera only, red light cameras, or combo speed/red light cams. The speed cams that used to be on the state highways are gone. But a bunch of others still exist.
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I got a speeding camera ticket in Chandler last year. 54 in a 45. I was only speeding because the light turned yellow and I sped up(it’s a combo speed/red light camera). I doubt there’s a cop in this land that would have given me a ticket for that in person, but since the camera takes the situation out of context by just providing a photo, I got a ticket for it.

(I beat the ticket by ignoring it, which means they have to serve it in person. Which they either didn’t do or they couldn’t because of my restricted access neighborhood. The ticket expires in 90 days if they can't serve it)
 
My wife just got a $150 red light camera ticket for making a right on red. I've gotten 2. There is one assemblyman trying to get speed cameras installed on the LIE/I495. I also got a $35 parking ticket for backing into a parking spot.
 
FlyingAccountant said:
I got a speeding camera ticket in Chandler last year. 54 in a 45. I was only speeding because the light turned yellow and I sped up(it’s a combo speed/red light camera). I doubt there’s a cop in this land that would have given me a ticket for that in person, but since the camera takes the situation out of context by just providing a photo, I got a ticket for it.

(I beat the ticket by ignoring it, which means they have to serve it in person. Which they either didn’t do or they couldn’t because of my restricted access neighborhood. The ticket expires in 90 days if they can't serve it)
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The way they're supposed to be calibrated is to at least give an 11 over the posted limit. You weren't also hit with a red light run incorrectly, were you? Or did you make the yellow and it was speed only?

The speed cameras have issues such as not taking into account situations, etc. And the ones tied together with an intersection, unfortunately create some situations where someone is attempting to make the yellow, as either slamming the brakes to stop at a certain point would be unsafe, and it's safer to proceed through the yellow.

But this leads to another problem: yellow lights that have no standards of timing. One intersection could have a 2 second yellow light, and I've seen as long as around 6 seconds, and everything in between. So it can't be accurately gauged whether attempting to stop when the yellow occurs, is safer than attempting to proceed through the yellow.

Another implementation that's not at every intersection, is a delay between a red light in one direction, and the start of the green light from the opposing direction. Ideally, there should be a delay when a red occurs, to when the opposing green occurs, to where all directions are red for a brief period of time, to account for an accidental/ misjudged or even intentional red light runner. But not all intersections are programmed in this way.

The red light cameras that are standalone and passive (not active speed cams) do have a useful mission, in that they can and do catch intersection vehicle accidents on film, at least providing a photographic record of what occurred during the accident. So there is that. But having they themselves as an enforcement tool, does has several problems associated with their operation....calibration, settings, etc.





NovemberEcho said:
My wife just got a $150 red light camera ticket for making a right on red. I've gotten 2. There is one assemblyman trying to get speed cameras installed on the LIE/I495. I also got a $35 parking ticket for backing into a parking spot.
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Right on a red should be accounted for by red light cameras (unless at an intersection where signage states No Right on Red or similar). Geneally, the lines painted in the intersection for where the red light camera should trigger, should be well enough into the intersection to ensure that a red light runner actually entered the intersection on a red light, not on a yellow light that turned red while in the intersection. And those calibration lines should not exist at the right-on-red area (or left on red, in one-way to one-way intersections) of intersections, again unless otherwise prohibited.
 
MikeD said:
The way they're supposed to be calibrated is to at least give an 11 over the posted limit. You weren't also hit with a red light run incorrectly, were you? Or did you make the yellow and it was speed only?

The speed cameras have issues such as not taking into account situations, etc. And the ones tied together with an intersection, unfortunately create some situations where someone is attempting to make the yellow, as either slamming the brakes to stop at a certain point would be unsafe, and it's safer to proceed through the yellow.

But this leads to another problem: yellow lights that have no standards of timing. One intersection could have a 2 second yellow light, and I've seen as long as around 6 seconds, and everything in between. So it can't be accurately gauged whether attempting to stop when the yellow occurs, is safer than attempting to proceed through the yellow.

Another implementation that's not at every intersection, is a delay between a red light in one direction, and the start of the green light from the opposing direction. Ideally, there should be a delay when a red occurs, to when the opposing green occurs, to where all directions are red for a brief period of time, to account for an accidental/ misjudged or even intentional red light runner. But not all intersections are programmed in this way.

The red light cameras that are standalone and passive (not active speed cams) do have a useful mission, in that they can and do catch intersection vehicle accidents on film, at least providing a photographic record of what occurred during the accident. So there is that. But having they themselves as an enforcement tool, does has several problems associated with their operation....calibration, settings, etc.







Right on a red should be accounted for by red light cameras (unless at an intersection where signage states No Right on Red or similar). Geneally, the lines painted in the intersection for where the red light camera should trigger, should be well enough into the intersection to ensure that a red light runner actually entered the intersection on a red light, not on a yellow light that turned red while in the intersection. And those calibration lines should not exist at the right-on-red area (or left on red, in one-way to one-way intersections) of intersections, again unless otherwise prohibited.
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In NY there are literally more "no right on red" than there are "right on red". And then there are some like the one right by my work where you can turn on red, but if you don't stop for a full 3 seconds you get a ticket. The People's Republic of NY makes sure their hand is in every pot.
 
MikeD said:
The way they're supposed to be calibrated is to at least give an 11 over the posted limit. You weren't also hit with a red light run incorrectly, were you? Or did you make the yellow and it was speed only?

The speed cameras have issues such as not taking into account situations, etc. And the ones tied together with an intersection, unfortunately create some situations where someone is attempting to make the yellow, as either slamming the brakes to stop at a certain point would be unsafe, and it's safer to proceed through the yellow.

But this leads to another problem: yellow lights that have no standards of timing. One intersection could have a 2 second yellow light, and I've seen as long as around 6 seconds, and everything in between. So it can't be accurately gauged whether attempting to stop when the yellow occurs, is safer than attempting to proceed through the yellow.

Another implementation that's not at every intersection, is a delay between a red light in one direction, and the start of the green light from the opposing direction. Ideally, there should be a delay when a red occurs, to when the opposing green occurs, to where all directions are red for a brief period of time, to account for an accidental/ misjudged or even intentional red light runner. But not all intersections are programmed in this way.

The red light cameras that are standalone and passive (not active speed cams) do have a useful mission, in that they can and do catch intersection vehicle accidents on film, at least providing a photographic record of what occurred during the accident. So there is that. But having they themselves as an enforcement tool, does has several problems associated with their operation....calibration, settings, etc.







Right on a red should be accounted for by red light cameras (unless at an intersection where signage states No Right on Red or similar). Geneally, the lines painted in the intersection for where the red light camera should trigger, should be well enough into the intersection to ensure that a red light runner actually entered the intersection on a red light, not on a yellow light that turned red while in the intersection. And those calibration lines should not exist at the right-on-red area (or left on red, in one-way to one-way intersections) of intersections, again unless otherwise prohibited.
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This really highlights what a terrible design of junction a red light crossroads is. I wish there were more traffic circles here. Higher traffic volume, less congestion, and traffic moving more slowly. Of course, that would require drivers to pay attention as well, making the roads even safer. Again we get to the counter-intuitive idea of more complicated road designs being safer.
 
NovemberEcho said:
In NY there are literally more "no right on red" than there are "right on red". And then there are some like the one right by my work where you can turn on red, but if you don't stop for a full 3 seconds you get a ticket. The People's Republic of NY makes sure their hand is in every pot.
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And that's be kind of stuff that takes a potentially good idea, and turns it into a not good idea at all that goes against any good intent.

NickH said:
This really highlights what a terrible design of junction a red light crossroads is. I wish there were more traffic circles here. Higher traffic volume, less congestion, and traffic moving more slowly. Of course, that would require drivers to pay attention as well, making the roads even safer. Again we get to the counter-intuitive idea of more complicated road designs being safer.
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I can only speak for AZ, but there a few intersections at freeway exits that have been retrofitted with traffic circles that replaced the standard intersection. I agree with you, I like the traffic circle. But there are so many naysayers here to traffic circles, but that's usually because said people don't know how to use a traffic circle properly or understand how they operate, but of course they won't admit that. And hence why traffic circles haven't picked up more in popularity.
 
Stone Cold said:
Very true about beer. Surprisingly, most Russians I've met take the DUI laws very seriously.

Of course, one of our former drivers died in a DUI accident. He was the sober one. The oncoming drunk driver crossed the median and took him out. And there are numerous cases where drunk drivers are drivers with connections and don't get near the penalties of others.

Look for the book the day I retire, on life over here...
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I believe it.

On the shuttle back to SVO the driver was talking about the traffic jam. Apparently there was a construction worker fixing a pothole, some "important" person drives around the barricade, hits the pothole, damages his car. Then he apparently, in broad daylight, stops, steps out of his car and shoots the construction worker, killing him. Gets back in the car, continues driving.

Eagerly awaiting your book! :)
 
NickH said:
This really highlights what a terrible design of junction a red light crossroads is. I wish there were more traffic circles here. Higher traffic volume, less congestion, and traffic moving more slowly. Of course, that would require drivers to pay attention as well, making the roads even safer. Again we get to the counter-intuitive idea of more complicated road designs being safer.
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I love traffic circles. There are quite a few near my neighborhood. Smooth, efficient and easy. Fun too.
 
I haven't seen any in the DEN metro (yet), but they've been popping up in ABQ over the years. With driver education being what it is in NM, you'd expect something like Thunderdome at these things, but for the most part everything goes smoothly...somewhat.
 
Stone Cold said:
Very true about beer. Surprisingly, most Russians I've met take the DUI laws very seriously.

Of course, one of our former drivers died in a DUI accident. He was the sober one. The oncoming drunk driver crossed the median and took him out. And there are numerous cases where drunk drivers are drivers with connections and don't get near the penalties of others.

Look for the book the day I retire, on life over here...
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I like the German way of dealing with it. That is, if I remember correctly from growing up there.

You basically get one "oops, I didn't know I had that many" that still has very real consequences. I believe 6 month suspension and a fine.

Do it again, you're done driving for good.
 
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