Got my first ever speeding ticket, but as is most police procedure around here, in the least dramatic fashion. There aren't a lot of cops to spare, and collateral is expensive to damage, so no high-speed car chases, no sirens wailing, no angry amplified voices yelling at me to 'pull over!' No. I get a polite letter in the mail informing me that the car (plate no. XXXX) registered to me was involved in a speeding incident on this date and time, along this road. Could I please 'furnish' traffic police with the name and licence of the driver of the car at that date/time/location by (deadline). They didn't say, 'or else'. No need.
They have me dead to rights. They have video evidence since traffic cameras are everywhere on the roads these days, but they won't assume who the driver was. They give me a chance to self-incriminate, and I have to because there's no one else I can defensibly blame for the infraction. They give me a QR code to a secure site on which I can sheepishly admit my guilt, and it's done. Then I just sit back and check my mailbox for few days to see what my punishment will be.
Today, the dreaded letter arrives. I could have been fined $150 and received 4 demerit points. Instead, I am let off with an admonishment, a warning, and an exhortation to please maintain road safety when driving. I breathe a sigh of relief, knowing full well that I must keep my nose clean for at least a year to avoid getting the book thrown at me for a second violation too close to the first one.
But what caused me to exceed the speed limit that day? I cannot say for sure, but I remember another car in front of me straddling 2 lanes and going really slowly for quite some distance. I tolerated this speed bump of a driver for as long as I could before I went a little nuts. When a window opened up to overtake him (or her) I took it, but my emotionally charged state probably kept my foot on the accelerator for longer than it should have been. BUSTED.
If it wasn't this situation, I can't imagine how else I could possibly have been driving at 80 km/h on a 70 km/h road.
