Common Speeding & Traffic Violations
On the New York State Thruway, Adirondack Northway, the Berkshire Spur (Interstate 87 and 90) and the Taconic State Parkway, the New York State Police, Sherriff’s Deputies and local law enforcement issue thousands of traffic and speeding citations every year. The most common traffic violations on these major highways are speeding tickets, traffic device violations, seat belt violations and cell phone violations.
Cell phone and Texting violations:
§1225-C Cell Phone violations. As of June 1st, 2013, all cell phone violations are now five point violations that will appear on your driving record.
§1225-D Use of Portable Electronic Devices (texting). As of June 1, 2013 using an electronic device while operating a motor vehicle is now a 5 point violation. Electronic devices include a “personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device with mobile data access, laptop computer, pager, broadband personal communication device, two-way messaging device, electronic game, or portable computing device.”
There are stiffer penalties for CDL drivers and drivers on probationary licenses!
Speeding: The speeding violations are usually issued under section 1180b or 1180d of the NYS Vehicle & Traffic Law. 1180b is cited when the driver is ticketed for speeding in a 55 mph zone. 1180d is a general speeding violation used for all other speeding zones.
The points for a speeding ticket conviction can range from 3 to 11 points.
1 – 10 MPH 3 points
11 – 20 MPH 4 points
21 – 30 MPH 6 points
31 – 40 MPH 8 points
More than 40 MPH 11 points
The Fines for speeding ticket convictions run on a graduated scale. Most of the Courts that I have worked with in upstate New York do not assess the maximum fine unless the driver has great number of violations on their driving record or the speed is excessively high. A three point speeding ticket fine is usually in the $150 to $200 range plus the New York State surcharge, currently $93.*
§1180f, speed in work zone. Work zone speeding ticket convictions are assessed a double fine ($$$$).
Traffic signs, signals and markings: On the major highways, the most common of these issued violations is section 1110a, failure to obey a traffic control device.
Failure to obey a traffic control device is a two point violation in New York State. This is one of the commonly used statutes when a driver receives a roadside reduction or plea deal in Court. The 1110a, usually carries a fine of $150 plus the NYS surcharge, which is currently $93. Drivers from other states should be cautious about pleading guilty to this charge as many other states penalize the driver with a higher point value than New York!!!
§1144-A (A) Failure to Move Over for Emergency Vehicle. This law requires drivers that approach a police car, tow truck or other emergency vehicle parked on the right side of the roadway and has its lights flashing, to safely “move over” from the right lane to the left lane. When the law was enacted it was listed as a two point violation. It is often confused with the 3 point violation of 1144 (a) that requires drivers who are approached by an emergency vehicle, such as an ambulance, fire truck or police car to move over to the right side of the roadway to let the emergency vehicle pass. Side note: the 1144A(a) is aggressively enforced and the deals are limited in many jurisdictions!
Traffic control lights and signals: These are usually cited in section 1111 of the Vehicle and Traffic law. This ticket is often issued when a driver fails to stop for a red light and there is a car accident. Red light tickets are known to cause insurance increases so this ticket can be very expensive even with a driver that has an otherwise clean driving record. Most of the traffic signal violations are currently three points convictions in New York State.
In my experience, the fines for a signal violation are the same as the failure to obey a traffic control device violation, usually $243 to $293 depending on the facts and circumstances.
Many Courts will not allow a plea reduction where the signal violation resulted in a car accident. Car accident cases pose a special problem regarding liability issues. A consultation with an experienced attorney is highly recommended.
Seat belt violations. There are really two types of seat belt violations, those with points and those without points.
§1229-c (3) is the no driver seat belt violation, and for mature drivers over the age of 21, this is a zero point violation that will appear as a conviction on the driver’s abstract. The fine for this violation is usually in the $75 to $125 range plus the NYS surcharge.
§1229-c (1) c, is the no-child seat belt violation and is a 3 point violation in New York State. The fine is usually the same as a traffic device violation, but it can be higher depending upon the jurisdiction of the Court.
§1201a, parking on the highway is a zero point violation in New York State. This violation usually carries a $100 to $150 fine for the first offence, plus a $25 NYS surcharge. The 1201a second offence carries a higher fine. The beauty of this violation is that I have never seen it appear on the driver’s abstract!
§1212. Reckless driving is a criminal offence and is considered an unclassified misdemeanor. I have seen reckless driving charges issued when the case involves a high speed or there has been a car accident. Driver’s issued this charge need to be concerned about the criminal conviction and the fine is usually in the $300 to $400 range plus the NYS surcharge. Reckless driving is also a 5 point conviction on the driver’s record.
Call me today for a free telephone consultation regarding your speeding or traffic ticket violation!
* As of July 26th, surcharges have been raised from $85 to $93 dollars. As of this date, all parking violations have a $25 NYS surcharge.