This Week's Actual Example
You're a sales rep. Been driving for 25 years. No accidents, ever. A few minor speeding fines, that's it. You need you licence for work. You need to work to feed your family (wife and 4 kids), and to pay your large mortgage. You're a responsible driver, a safe driver. Everyone says so...
You're driving from Sydney to Brisbane along the Pacific Highway late at night. The speed limits are all over the place. In one 15 km stretch of road they range from 40, to 50, to 60, to 70, to 80, to 100 and back to 50 (it's true, check Grafton to Ballina for example...). You go past a Holden Commodore, travelling the other way, (it could be an unmarked police car you tell yourself, ever vigilant about that kind of thing) and you know you are doing 80 in an 80 zone, because that's what the last sign you saw said the limit was. No problems.
Suddenly there's a pair of headlights right up behind you. Really close, dangerously close. There's no police lights. You slow down a bit, hoping they'll overtake. They don't. They just get closer. It freaks you out. You speed up a bit. You're worriedly looking in the revision mirror, unable to concentrate on the road, concerned about this maniac behind you. It can't be a cop, surely they wouldn't do this? I'm not being pulled over. There are some nutters on the road! You speed up a bit more. A few nervous minutes go by, playing his dangerous game, and then the blue lights come on. It's a cop!? Why didn't he pull you over immediately?
"I clocked you at 85 in a 50 zone, and then 112 in an 80 zone. Double demerit points until 12pm tonight. You're in a lot of trouble."
The charges are speeding and then, before you're pulled over, while you're speeding - speeding again!
Loss of points, loss of licence, loss of income, potential loss of job and home.
What a joke. Maybe he should have just followed you for another few kilometers, checking your speed every few seconds, charged you with 85 counts of speeding and had the rest of the night off...
What's Wrong With This Scenario?
The Road Authorities, wherever they are in Australia, like to place ridiculous limits on our roads and enforce them with over-enthusiastic police, rather than actually fix the roads. It's a whole lot easier, and you actually make money instead of spending it. It's a no-brainer.
In a typical journey on one of our national highways, we are confronted with flashing warnings, numerous changing speed limits, advertisements about how small your penis is if you speed (never proven scientifically!), 15 foot billboard pictures of fatal accidents, countless speed cameras, warnings about speed cameras and threats of loss of licence. Why is this all necessary in Australia, when there is no other country in the world (that Court Dude knows of, let me know if there is) that does the same? Are we really that much more dangerous on the road than everyone else in the world? Are we really that dumb that we have to be constantly reminded not to drive into each other? And aren't all those signs, flashing warnings and giant apocalyptic billboards actually distracting us from driving safely?
Court Dude Statistic
In 2010 there were more than 58,000 "transport regulatory offences" committed in NSW alone.
That's about one every 10 minutes, just in NSW. Too many bad drivers, or too many freakin rules?
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