State Police write thousands of tickets during weekend safety campaign

"I have no problem with the drunken drivers being removed from our roadways. I must question the drug busts as a futile and horrendous waste of money."

If you are under the influence of drugs OR alcohol, your driving ability and judgment is impaired. Wouldn't that make both issues a safety problem?

why do you think patrolman only write x amount of tickets?think of it the answer is simple.they have two to three days a month they can be in court.if you could look at a ticket book you would see that the written tickets fall on those days.after they reach their quotas unless you are driving extremely bad or driving erratic(drunk)you wont get stopped after a patrolman has filled his court date.i know a few retired police officers and they all tell me that they had to fill x amount of tickets a month.police have more items in their cars with the sole intention of catching speeders.who do you think pays for all that fancy equipment.radar detectors,they haven't used radar in so many years.your detector is a lazier detector and that does not fall under the DOT it comes under the FCC,and the police don't have that jurisdiction,although it would cost more in lawyers to prove that point i suppose.i have much respect for the jobs that police have to do and especially the city police ,those guys take all of the abuse,but don't kid yourself each patrolman has a quota to fill.

What facts are you talking about....no tickets in extreme cold or heat? Are you crazy. I can see no tickets in the rain (if its too heavy), but cold or heat has nothing to do with it. If you have a shift, you can expect to handle at least 1 accident per shift. When its rush hour, it is almost impossible to write a ticket because you could cause an accident yourself turning around on someone, so its not worth it. There are more things with police work than writing tickets. The problem is that citizens think you are picking on them if you give them a ticket and not a warning. Don't speed and you won't get stopped. Adults are like kids, they will push the limit and then cry when they get caught. Your warnings are the speed limit signs, not the trooper stopping you and telling you to slow down.

Two facts:

Police do not write tickets in tunnels, in the rain, or extreme cold or heat. Check State records using the Freedom Of Information Act. State Cops are indifferent or lazy. Anyone who travels along Virginia’s roadways knows that any cop can issue at least 15 tickets per shift. Almost all do not. At the minimum of 150 working days per year (including accident calls and court appearances) on the road would yield a minimum of 2250 tickets. At a minimum of $65.00 per ticket, would yield over $146,000 per year. Bottom line is the State Police does not do their job.

Secondly, the State does not truly care about the safety of the Interstates. If they did, enforcement would be greater. Many times, I can travel over 75 or more miles and not see any enforcement. 80 miles per hour is the norm for at least 20 % of drivers.

The State Police don't receive one penny of the fines from traffic tickets. The fines assessed from State Police tickets is transferred to the state Literary Fund, which is used for schools.

Jamie, RADAR Detectors are illegal in the state of Virginia, and if you are caught with one, you will have it confiscated along with a hefty fine for having this illegal object in your automobile.

Now, they are legal just across the NC state line.

Fund raiser, are you nuts. these guys are doing their job. If they would do this all the time some of the jerks wouldn't be driving, there would be less traffic and wrecks because someone just had to get in front of you or cut you off. I say hire more police to clear the roads of these violators and ease heavy traffic and raise money in the process. Gov Kaine isn't going to provide any road funding. Try running the speed limit on any road and you will get run over. If the jerks want to drive fast, reckless and on the cell phone MAKE THEM PAY!!!!! Support your police. No I am not a policeman.

Those of us who try our best to drive safely and obey the law appreciate your efforts!

This was no different than a campaign fundraiser. They just had to give it a catchy name to make it legal. Find a few troopers to speak off the record and "the truth will set you free".

They were out there. Went to Charlottesville Friday and probably saw over 30 of them on rt 64.

I have no problem with the drunken drivers being removed from our roadways. I must question the drug busts as a futile and horrendous waste of money. The 'war on drugs' has cost the taxpayers of this country billions of dollars. To date there is no indication that it has had any positive affect except to keep certain drug czars, on both sides of the fence, in power and money. Alcohol prohibition did nothing for the US either. It was repealed by cooler heads and in doing so removed much of the illegal activity associated with it. As for the speeders, I would suggest our troopers spend several months in training in any European country. They would then learn how to actually manage safety on the highways here. Speeding in itself is not a danger. It is the non-discriminate way that so many drivers operate on our highways that is the threat. It is the unwillingness of our state troopers to enforce proper driving technique and etiquette that impedes and threatens all of us out there. Why? There's no money in it... of course.

58 is like one big drag race strip from this side of Franklin, clear to 664. Get out there, troopers!

If they patrol the West Norfolk Bridge.

This is NOT a "safety" campaign, it's yet again another quota maker for State money. The whole thing should be illegal; A bunch of cops out harassing people. Traffic cops are lowlifes with badges.

You can thank former Suffolk COP Gilbert Jackson for the lack of support enforcement from the VSP within the city limits (except for 664). Years ago (prior 90's) there was a disagreement between administrations and Jackson basically told them something to the effect of we don't need your help. So they said fine. So even now (2008) the only time you will see a trooper with a vehicle stopped in Suffolk (except 664) it's because a driver did something so silly in front of them or they observed an equipment viloation passing through. With the continued building of population here you would think any/all police presence would be accepted with open arms. And furthermore, you'll also notice very seldom will you see an SPD unit working radar on 664. The VSP told Suffolk they would handle that. SPD is a very capable dept with knowledgeable staff, but isn't time to mend that bridge? Of course, as long as they don't get me at 67/55!!! Press hard....5 copies!

it's all about revenue! My advice, buy a radar detector. It's cheap insurance, it CANNOT be confiscated, and the ticket is only about eight bucks! VALENTINE ONE FTW!!!

Is there any way to get the State Police to Come to Suffolk on Rt 58 and write 3 thousand tickets?

Ok, now can we take this money and fix I-64. Just driving on that road should be considered wreckless driving......

Everyone knows exactley what this was, quotas! Everyone is screaming there's a tax deficit in the state government so what better way to make money, utilize the state police. This is what you would call "highway robbery."

"Safety Campaign"??? Whatever!

Let's call this what it really is: a REVENUE CAMPAIGN.

If the police were interested in helping to make people safer on the highways, they would be educating in traffic stops, not arresting, issuing, charging, searching, and blah, blah, blah.

Traffic law enforcement is too overtly a money-maker to be anything near a safety issue. For that matter, watch the police drive, and report back about who the "unsafe" drivers are.