texianjoe Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Monday morning I am driving to work from Pasadena to Katy. Just past downtown between Taylor and Shepard are two Metro Police pickups giving tickets on the inbound side. There are busdrivers getting raped and assulted, passangers getting shot, stabbed and robbed. And these guys are up on the freeway giving tickets. You may think it is sour grapes but I got my license when I was 16 in 1975 and have been driving the streets of Houston since. In that time I have gotten 2 tickets. I have the nothing but respect for law enforcement officers. But something is not right here. I drive the left lane of I10 inbound on the way home and sometimes when traffic is heavy I will count the number of cars with one driver in the HOV lane. I average 40 to 50 from Dairy Ashford to I610. Think of the criminals that would be off the street and money that would be saved if all the agencies stayed in their primary roles. Metro takes care of Metro. Constables run warrants and lock up criminals. Sheriffs were baliffs, jailers and patrol the rural areas. Then there would be less criminals because they would be in jail and HPD could be able to do their main function to Protect and serve. Money would be saved because there would be no need for Metro or Constables to buy chase vehicles and SWAT equipment and LIDAR and radar guns. But no, everyone wants to get into the ticket game to make money for their agency so they can buy the toys and set the speed traps and not pay attention to what or who they are supposed to be protecting.Sorry I had to get that off my chest.joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Think of the criminals that would be off the street and money that would be saved if all the agencies stayed in their primary roles.That's exactly the problem. All these agencies have to write those tickets if they want any money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jax Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 How fast were you going? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texianjoe Posted August 2, 2007 Author Share Posted August 2, 2007 How fast were you going?When I get on 225 I set my cuise on 65. But usually it's much slower with traffic. The distance traveled compared to the travel time shortened by doing 75 for example is insignificant to risk a fine. I haven't been pulled over since 1983 for doing 35 in a school zone on Bellaire Blvd just west of Sharpstown that was from one side of an intersection to the other long.They get enough money to do their jobs. And if they weren't out there trying to play Poncirello they would free up resources for other functions. They want more so they can buy equipment that does not support their primary rolls. Do you think Metro does not have fully automatic weapons. What in their job function of protecting the bus routes and enforcing the HOV regulations and patroling the Park and Ride lots would require them to own fully automatic weapons or radar equipment. And how does enforcing speeding up on a freeway protect the operators and passangers of buses. People were running into the trains on the southside almost on a daily basis. Where were they when those traffic signals needed to be obeyed.joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 What in their job function of protecting the bus routes and enforcing the HOV regulations and patroling the Park and Ride lots would require them to own fully automatic weapons or radar equipment. And how does enforcing speeding up on a freeway protect the operators and passangers of buses. People were running into the trains on the southside almost on a daily basis. Where were they when those traffic signals needed to be obeyed.Per their website, one of their primary job functions is to patrol the all the major freeway cooridors. I guess that could explain the radar equipment.The automatic weapons could be explained by the officers who ride the trains & buses during high-publicity events like the Superbowl.I agree that I would like to see them focused on the HOV lanes, the buses & the light rail. Honestly, they could probably save the money they feel they have to write tickets to get, just by eliminating most of the police cars and putting the officers on foot patrols on the buses & trains. Only the prisoner transport, and the HOV lane officers would need marked police cars with prisoner cages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jax Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 That sucks - a ticket for doing 65. I'd like to see some of the guys doing 80-90 get tickets though. I guess I'll have to watch myself. What was the speed limit, out of curiosity? In Canada we can get away with doing about 20 kph over the speed limit (just over 10 mph) and you're pretty much guaranteed to not get a ticket if you stay under 20 over the limit. I always assumed it was similar here, except I see traffic cops less often.I once got a ticket in Toronto for doing 60 kph (37 mph) on an access road just before I was about to merge onto a high speed express way. Talk about speed traps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vertigo58 Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 They get enough money to do their jobs. And if they weren't out there trying to play Poncirello they would free up resources for other functions. joe Ponch in action (for our younger viewers). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 METRO receives no revenue from tickets written by their officers. You'll have to come up with some other reason for them enforcing traffic laws. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 so you got a ticket. big deal. people get them all the time, whether they deserve it or not.hire a lawyer or suck it up and don't take it personal.after a ticket, i wish the officer a good day, call a lawyer and move on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Don't let faster cars goad you into doing over 60, Texanjoe. You are to go at 60 M. P. H. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 METRO receives no revenue from tickets written by their officers. You'll have to come up with some other reason for them enforcing traffic laws.Then who does receive the revenue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 If the citation is issued by a city officer, the fines are split between the city and the state. If the citation is issued by anyone else, it is filed in a Justice of the Peace Court. Fines in JP courts are split between the county and the state. Since METRO is neither city nor county, its tickets are filed in JP court, meaning Harris County and the state get the revenue. METRO gets nothing.This also applies to citations given for riding the bus or rail without paying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 If the citation is issued by a city officer, the fines are split between the city and the state. If the citation is issued by anyone else, it is filed in a Justice of the Peace Court. Fines in JP courts are split between the county and the state. Since METRO is neither city nor county, its tickets are filed in JP court, meaning Harris County and the state get the revenue. METRO gets nothing.This also applies to citations given for riding the bus or rail without paying.Besides METRO, what other law enforcement agencies apply to this "black-hole of funds" issue? Also, if METRO gets nothing out of it, then why do they even bother writing tickets? Could they have a deal with the county or state worked out so that if they bring business (tickets/citations) to the courts, that they'd get something back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Besides METRO, what other law enforcement agencies apply to this "black-hole of funds" issue? Also, if METRO gets nothing out of it, then why do they even bother writing tickets? Could they have a deal with the county or state worked out so that if they bring business (tickets/citations) to the courts, that they'd get something back?I would assume that since METRO is a transit agency, and following traffic laws ostensibly promotes smooth traffic flow (no opinion on that remark), that issuing traffic citations to violators falls within their charter. Also, METRO police are certified peace officers, giving them the ability to enforce all laws within their jurisdiction.Other agencies filing in JP courts include the Sheriff, constables, DPS, Game Wardens, TABC, and other state police agents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texianjoe Posted August 2, 2007 Author Share Posted August 2, 2007 so you got a ticket. big deal. people get them all the time, whether they deserve it or not.hire a lawyer or suck it up and don't take it personal.after a ticket, i wish the officer a good day, call a lawyer and move on.NO, NO, NO, you are missing my point completely. I did NOT get a ticket. They were on the other side of the freeway. I have not recieved a ticket since 1983 and have no problem with them other than what I mentioned above. And yes they do get a precentage of what they write remember the hullaballo about ticket quotas and the trouble Kendelton got into for setting up speed traps. Thats when the state fixed it so a citys' revenue could only have a certain precentage came from traffic fines.The point I was trying to make is why are they doing HPDs job when they have enough to do enforcing the rules on HOVs, patroling P&R lots so peoples cars don't get stolen or broken into or even keeping their own bus drivers in line. But setting up speed traps on a freeway with no HOV lane is a waste of their time and our tax money. I realize that they are Certified Peace Officers but like someone mentioned above so are game wardens but I don't see them up on 45 giving out traffic tickets.Someone may remember a few years ago an elderly driver got on 45 HOV going the wrong way and hit a truck head on and killed a little girl somewhere around the Parker area. Where were they then. You know they have at least a couple of patrols in the area at rush hour, they might have prevented that if they would have been doing their jobs.joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Kendleton = CityMETRO = Not CityDifferent beast. Look it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 I would assume that since METRO is a transit agency, and following traffic laws ostensibly promotes smooth traffic flow (no opinion on that remark), that issuing traffic citations to violators falls within their charter. Also, METRO police are certified peace officers, giving them the ability to enforce all laws within their jurisdiction.Other agencies filing in JP courts include the Sheriff, constables, DPS, Game Wardens, TABC, and other state police agents.All these agencies are county or state. I was wondering if there were any other local entities like METRO that would technically not receive any funds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jax Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Oh I thought you meant you hadn't gotten a ticket since 1983 but you got one recently.So if they are giving tickets to the guys going 90-100 and swerving between lanes to pass other cars without signaling (or passing in the exit lane) and stuff like that, I think that's probably a good thing.If they are giving people tickets for going 10 mph over the limit, that's a speed trap and that's just lame.I heard that there were quotas, but I once asked an officer and he said it was not true... so who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texianjoe Posted August 2, 2007 Author Share Posted August 2, 2007 Oh I thought you meant you hadn't gotten a ticket since 1983 but you got one recently.So if they are giving tickets to the guys going 90-100 and swerving between lanes to pass other cars without signaling (or passing in the exit lane) and stuff like that, I think that's probably a good thing.If they are giving people tickets for going 10 mph over the limit, that's a speed trap and that's just lame.I heard that there were quotas, but I once asked an officer and he said it was not true... so who knows.Any agency city, county or state should stop someone doing that kind of driving because they are a deadly accident waiting to happen. I have no problem with that. But any agency city, county or state needs to take care of their primary area of responsibility before they enter into mutual aid agreements to enforce other agencies jurisdictions. That is the point I was trying to make. Whether they do it for revenue or ego is neither here nor there. When all vehicles on HOVs have at least 2 passangers and everyone feels safe waiting for a bus at Kress and Lyons and riding it downtown and cars do not get vandalized siting at the Park and Ride lot, then they can enforce whatever law they want. In their jurisdictions.joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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