Ok, first the BAD news! I recently got a speeding ticket (my first one ever). The GOOD news! I'm eligible to attend Traffic School and get this violation COMPLETELY REMOVED from my DMV driving record. I'm also thankful this didn't happen 'on my way' to a gig.

In addition to the traditional (8 hours 'in a classroom') Traffic School classes offered locally, there's now a wide range of internet online Traffic School courses available which let you do it from your home computer (in less than 6 hours, and at your own pace), and for a cheaper price as well. The 'internet' home Traffic School course options I'm approved to take are listed below. Anyone here ever have to attend traffic school? If so, via any one of the following online Traffic School courses?

Advise & recommendations appreciated. - Scott
http://www.quickandeasytrafficschool.com
http://www.dayornighttrafficschool.com
http://www.becooltrafficschool.com
http://www.goodbyeticket.com
http://www.ustrafficacademy.com
http://www.warpspeedhomestudy.com
http://www.ampmtrafficschool.com
http://www.alwaysonlinetrafficschool.com
http://www.toolazyfortrafficschool.com
http://www.trafficjamn.com
http://www.internettrafficschool.com
http://www.opentrafficschool.com
http://www.allvideotrafficschool.com
http://www.trafficschooltogo.com
http://www.originalhomestudycourse.com
http://www.besttrafficschool.com
http://www.idrivesafely.com
http://www.abettertrafficschool.com
http://www.affordablehomestudy.com
http://www.easyonlinetrafficschool.com
http://www.takehome.com
http://www.trafficinteractive.com
http://www.webtrafficschool.com
http://www.drivesafeonline.com
http://www.trafficschool.com
http://www.anytimetrafficschool.com
http://www.homesteadschools.com
http://www.removeaticket.com
http://www.happytrafficschool.com
http://www.hometrafficschool.com
http://www.simplefastfun.com
http://www.onenotguilty.com
http://www.drivinguniversity.com
http://www.trafficschoolonline.com
http://www.comedytrafficschool.com
http://www.247school.com
http://www.gotaticket.com
http://www.cees.com
http://www.traffic101.com
http://www.rushtrafficschool.com
http://www.eztrafficschool.com
http://www.skilleddriver.com
http://www.instanttrafficschool.com
http://www.gotoatrafficschool.com
http://www.fun4ufast2.com
http://www.cheapeasyfast.com
http://www.citationstation.com
http://www.allamericanhomestudy.com
http://www.trafficschool4less.com

Nope, can't help. But I know some people who got into that line of work and they made alot of money. From the looks of it, others have caught on.

Scott,

Why are you rushing to traffic school?

Before the server crash, I posted in June that I had received my first speeding ticket in all my 32 years of driving. I WAS coming home from a gig at 1:00 am and I was (allegedly) nailed doing 59 in a 45 mph zone.

Well I went to court last Wednesday for that speeding ticket. When I got to the court, I was dismayed to find there were at least 100 people in that room waiting for thier case to be called. I walked over to the sign-in desk and signed in. I noticed that all the other names had been checked off. I arrived at 6:00 pm for a 6:30 pm court date. Once I signed in, I sat down. As soon as I sat down, I noticed the clerk read the sign in sheet, pull documents from a box and place my documents across the room on a table.

The police officer who gave me the ticket then walked over to the table, read the documents, then called out my name. I went over to the officer. He read my document and said, "hmmmmm, 59 in a 45 huh....no prior speeding tickets in the last 3 years...I'll tell you what....I'll give you a break if you plead guilty to a lesser charge of broken speedometer which is a non-moving violation and pay a $35.00 fine"

For a micro-second I thought about exclaiming my innocense (being the pig headed Italian that I am), but thought better of it and said; "Golly Gee Officer, thank you!! That would be great". Then he tells me there may be a slight surcharge tacked on by the Judge.

I go and sit down and lo and behold, the Judge calls my name after the next person. I go up to the bench and hear the judge read the charges and explain that I was pleading guilty to a lesser charge of broken speedometer. He then looks up in the air and says; "$40.00 surcharge".

So, for $75.00 and 10 minutes of my time the issue was closed -- NO SPEEDING TICKET!!

If I were you, I would seek out the officer who gave you the ticket and ask to plead to a lesser charge. It's all a game by these municipalities to generate cash.

Good Luck!
Al

Scott, were you speeding?

Pay the ticket..Don't approach the officer and request a lessor charge..it may turn into another charge!!

Yeah, something like what happened to Al happened to me a couple of months ago - I got nailed in a speed trap and went to court to get the charge reduced and no points put on my record so my insurance wouldn't go up - no problemo, fine only.

What amazed me was a guy who went before the judge before me - he'd been arrested for speeding some 30mph over the limit, no license, no insurance, and worst of all when the police pulled him over he leaped out of the car and ran into the woods so the police had to chase him down on foot. He had no permanent residence and spoke no English, and there was noone in the room that could translate for him. The judge released this guy and told him that he would be required to return for court on a later date when they had a translater available... as if this guy understood a word he said! He just walked out and my guess is he'd never be seen again. If I'd done all that I'd still be in jail. This judge was either a dope or this happens so often that the jail can't hold them all... besides, the court/city makes money off good citizens like me - not transients like him.

I got a ticket in Texas about 15 years ago. Went to the driving school. No problem, no record.
My son got a ticket a couple years ago here in Louisiana. Same thing. The school is a good thing.
DonM

Heh heh Scott...I've only had two speeding tickets in 21 years of driving...one in Boston and one here in Southern California....the one in California was 10 years ago and I went to traffic school. There were no Internet options then. It was great. Taken off my record. No points. No problems. And I WAS speeding....80 in a 65 Zone...

My buddies that have taken the Internet courses have really been happy with them....but BEWARE....the questions are things like "When the second instructor began his presentation what was he holding in his hand?" .... one buddy that basically just let the program run had to do it all over again.....you really have to pay attention....

Once again, those experiences are at least 5 years old and things may be interactive and totally different with today's schools.

I highly advocate going to the school and being done with it.

Tommy

Scott,
why don't you finally tell everybody that you got your speeding ticket while riding your bike?

I have spent a total of more than 6 years in the States, over four in TX alone. Gathered a total of seven speeding tickets. I don't see the problem. Ok, it costs you, but it doesn't disqualify you from anything, does it?

------------------
Roy-Andrè

Did YOU pay or did your employer pay? The rise in insurance rates can be formidable. The ticket cost is not the big deal. On insurance, add it up over the course of how long the increased rate is in effect. Ouch.

I paid them myself. I can't recall having been punished on the insurance side of things, but maybe this has changed last few years.

------------------
Roy-Andrè

Yeah right , and it was on a Harley Davidson XL 1200R Sportster 1200 Roadster (with the Tyros keyboard strapped to my back.
http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photos/20...200Roadster.htm


Scott

[This message has been edited by Scottyee (edited 10-28-2004).]

Fran: Yes, and I acknowledged this to the traffic officer as well. I believe, because of my demeanor with him, as well as the fact this was my first speeding violation ever, he treated me particularly nicely & reduced the speeding violation citation & amount as well. I believe my honesty & remorse (for speeding) worked in my favor. I promise to report my experiences with (online) Traffic School. I just need to figure out which one to go with. - Scott

I just don't get it??

You were speeding and got your "first" ticket. Maybe this was the first time you were ever speeding, or was it just the first time you were caught? Just pay the man!

Kbrkr says he was offered a lesser fine for "lying" about a broken speedometer??

Is it just me??? ..........or is it perfectly acceptable to behave like a bad lawyer, and twist and distort facts??

Rattley,

"Kbrkr says he was offered a lesser fine for "lying" about a broken speedometer??"

Still don't get it?

It's a game to make money for the town. I paid the fine, didn't I.

I did and this is my advice.
http://www.affordablehomestudy.com

they'll send you a 5-6 hr VHS tape(must watch becuse some questions are directly linked to the video content ) with questions.watch at home.take the exam(attached) and send them back in prepaid envelope.they 'll send the cetificate to court and will also send you a copy.it costs like 30-35$.the fastest and most effective way.'cause if you can't do the exam you can re-watch the video.no online,no realtime teachers-no stress.

you can do this within 1.5 to 2 months after the date of violation.


everybody has a right to go/do(traffic school )for only 1 violation within 18 months(no reports to DMV).if you have 2 violations (speeding,running the red light,not stopping at a STOP sign ,etc)within 18 months(and if you've taken the course) you won't have the option to take the traffic school again,you'll still have to pay the bill,it'll be written on your DMV record and needless to say, your car insurance premium will go up.



[This message has been edited by jamman (edited 10-29-2004).]

Perhaps it's not a game but a way of trying to reduce the number of people who get killed by mindless idiots in charge of cars.

Here in the UK we have a points system for such offenders - get 12 points and you lose your licence for a year. Surely you guys in the US have something similar?

KF

There is no points system as such here in the U.S. that I'm aware of. At least not in California to my knowledge.

Here in California if you're caught speeding in excess of 100MPH (160km/h for our UK friends), it's off to jail you go. If you're caught drinking and driving it's off to jail you go. If you have more than one DUI, i.e. - driving while under the influence of Alcohol or Drugs, i.e. Drunk or Loaded - within a certain time span, you will lose your license for 6 months to a year I believe.

In California and most likely in most other states, City police set up DUI checkpoints every so often to try and nail offenders. State Police (Highway Patrol in California) do it too. The roads are already jammed with tons of vehicles galavanting down our roads and highways which makes for a rather arduous task to navigate them as it is. Add on top of that those that are Drunk or Loaded "or Both " plus the speeders, and you could see why Law Enforcement takes a very dim view of offenders, especially the repeat kind. And yes, your insurance will go up if you have a ticket[s] on your record. So traffic school is a great way to eliminate not only the ticket from your record but also in keeping your insurance premiums from going up.... and up.... and up.... depending on the amount of tickets you get plus variables as to the kind and severity of the ticketed offense.

Best regards,
Mike

[This message has been edited by keybplayer (edited 10-29-2004).]

Just thought you guys might like to know I ended up going with http://happytrafficschool.com & that it took me less than 90 minutes to complete the course & pass the FINAL exam, which consisted of 25 fairly easy multiple choice questions. Total cost was $14.99. The certificate of successful completion will be sent out to me on Monday.

I really appreciate the ease of having done this online compared to the alternatiave of having to attend an 8 hour class, which requires paying a substantially higher class tuition fee ($35 and up) as well. I hope no one else here ever needs to attend traffic school to work off a ticket, but if you ever do, I definitely recommend doing it online as I did. I'll let you know if the certificate arrives as promised. - Scott