Published 9/9/07 (Modified 3/8/11)
By MoneyBlueBook

Traffic and parking tickets are the absolute worst ways to have to spend your money. The only possible good that can come from it is that you save a few extra minutes by speeding or a few extra minutes by not having to find a less convenient parking space.

Pulled Over in New York and Paying Dearly

Earlier in the year, I was pulled over in upstate New York for greatly exceeding the 65 miles per hour speed limit. Needless to say I had no credible defense other than that I did so in an otherwise "safe manner" since there was no one else on the interstate highway. Obviously what I did was wrong and I paid heavily for it. I was fined $500 for the speeding violation and penalized an additional $450 for a New York state law called the Driver Responsibility Assessment, which imposes a stiffer penalty for greater violations. The total came to nearly $1000.

Virginia and the New $3,550 Speeding Ticket

Many states are enacting stiffer penalties for traffic violations. In Virginia, the government recently enacted a very controversial self proclaimed revenue-generating law that slapped many ordinary traffic offenses with an additional civil remedial fee. That means a motorist convicted of reckless driving (75 mph in a 55 zone would qualify) faces not only a fine of up to $2,500 and a year in jail, but a non-negotiable and non-waivable $350 a year tax for three years, bringing the total possible cost of a speeding ticket to a whopping $3550.

Costly, But I Learned My Lesson

Comparatively but thankfully, my offense occurred in New York state, and my total fine was only a "measly $1000." I regret having to pay the fine but mostly, I regret having sped in the first place. I was not in a hurry and there was no emergency. Now I am down nearly $1000. Learn from my mistake, because it doesn't pay to speed. The extra time you save by speeding is not worth the stiff penalty you'll have to shell out if you're caught.

Such a waste of money, but lesson learned.