Live data from Hacker News

More Americans are using fake license plates

slate.com

61–70 of 170 posts

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#61
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Red light cameras are proven to reduce the most dangerous intersection crashes (T-bones) at the expense of a slight increase in rear-end collisions (which are the fault of the second driver for following too closely, and likely both drivers for speeding.) Before anyone starts bleating about companies changing cycle times: that's only happened in a few areas and most municipalities and states have caught on to the sca…

They fill me full of dread and anxiety. Surely that reduces life expectancy?

Likely not as much as a risk of an F150 ramming into the side of your car?

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am absolutely not a fan of fixed or hidden speed cameras, but red light cameras are legitimately good because you have zero reason or excuse to go through a red or speed through an intersection.

You have zero reason or excuse to be speeding, other than personal selfishness.

What about speed limits that were created for the purpose of revenue generation and not safety?

One example: https://www.speedtrap.org/california/lone-pine/

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#63
post #58
post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SF has relatively low violent crime compared to other cities, while drug sales are to be expected where a significant amount of people think drugs should be decriminalized or legalized. I don’t think the city has much of anything to do with the point of vague “moral decay.”

Perhaps depends on your definition of “violent crime“ or what you are including. Armed robbery, for example, is a violent crime, and SF is in the top 20 cities in the US for that crime.

Well if you put your SF hat on, that's not a violent crime, because no one is harmed but evil businesses, which is actually good.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#64

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

Looking both ways even when the light is green has become a habit of mine.

Over forty years ago my lead foot saved my life. I was first off the line and I punched it when the light turned green. Just as I crossed the intersection I saw a car in my rear-view mirror whiz past through the red light at ~80MPH. If I had been slower, I would be dead.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#65
post #8

As I understand New York state requires car inspections every 12 months. Do they not fail that due to unreadable license plates? Where I am in Europe if you even have a screw in a place that could potentially confuse a camera it will fail the inspection.

Enforcement on car inspections is lax. You might receive additional citations or an increased fine for having an expired inspection, but a lot of New York drivers (who I assume are not unique) will simply ignore tickets or pretend that they never received them (which is easy when they frequently come in the form of a letter tucked under your wiper, rather than a digital record).

There are plenty of cars in my neighborhood that are patently unsafe by the city and state's standards, or are modified in ways that wouldn't pass inspection. Many of them belong to cops, who drive into my neighborhood to police it from outside of the city.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#66

Many of the subjects of Streetsblog's "criminal mischief" (defaced or obscured plates) are vehicles displaying NYPD parking permits. This problem won't get solved until someone besides the police is tasked with fixing it, at least in NYC.

This is the crux of it: NYC's finest make up a disproportionate fraction of license plate forgery and defacement cases. Enforcement cannot occur, because to enforce these laws would be to ticket and fine their own (or their owns' families).

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Bud, do you really think it's immigrants primarily breaking the law in Baltimore of all places?

[flagged]

Xenophobia and racism are moral decay, and you are actively promoting them.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#68

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

During the BLM protests, and then when COVID hit, police "quiet quit" on traffic enforcement, despite little to no danger to them (and high availability of the vaccine, which many did not avail themselves of.) Unfortunately, the result has been skyrocketing injuries and deaths.

Do you have evidence of that?

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#69

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

I think this did actually happen but specifically starting in 2020 and I am only talking about traffic violations and not general crime. The article even mentions it and I have posted links to NHTSA statistics showing an increase in road traffic deaths per mile that started in 2020 and then continued to increase.

People blamed cars, pandemic stress, and decaying roads but I don't think it's any of those. I think the pullback in policing roads is a big part of it. Road rage incidents have increased in some regions too, I assume all regions, but these aren't necessarily counted nationwide.

I think it's possible that the empty roads in 2020 caused people to become accustomed to speeding and driving without other drivers on the road and caused people to degenerate as far as dealing with other people on the roads. I say this because speeding offenses increased since 2020 so maybe all these things are correlated. People became accustomed to not having to follow road traffic rules, and following sociable and safe driving, and get annoyed when they have to now. Police aren't enforcing it either. Just my thoughts.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#70

PA. Who has the most expensive turnpike. Closed all tolls. They implemented a shit mail system that doesn't work. Then they suddenly had 350 million in unpaid tolls. Talk about putting a stick in your wheel So the legislature changed the law - don't pay to play on the quasi private road, and your registration will get suspended I see a lot more cars with bike racks on 476 now.

Are you meant to have a smaller registration plate (same registration as your car) on the bike rack? That's how it works in Australia.
Post reply on HN