Speeding?
I got pulled over this morning after dropping off Duncan at school, and I just thought it was the usual random breath test thing. Nope, apparently I was speeding.
I was incredulous.
After dropping Duncan off at school, we left the parking space on Bleakley St (at 8:59am per Google Location History) and proceded to turn left on Rasumussen Rd after coming to an almost complete stop. You’ll note that this turn is sharper than 90 degrees. I turned left (south) on to Kalkee Rd (Urquhart St) after coming to a complete stop as I had to give way to a white panel van with “Window Cleaning” written in it in blue. At no point did my GPS speed warning go off, which it does if I exceed the posted speed limit by 1KM/h approximate ground speed.
The officer stated that Rasmussen Rd is where I was clocked, and after our conversation I went back around and paced it out. The section of Rasmussen Rd between Bleakly and Kalkee Rd is approximately 130 meters long (clocked by the car odometer, Google Maps says 137 meters so let’s round it up to 140m). The officer expects me to believe that I reached, in the wet in a car with an open differential and no traction control, 69KM/h before coming to a complete stop, all in a hundred and forty meters.
The officer stated that the last time the speed detector was calibrated was in October, and that they only need to be calibrated every 12 months, but I think it’s time to do it again. She was a young blonde lady - I didn’t catch her name or badge number though - in the car by herself. She further claimed that it “took a bit to catch [me]” despite the fact I pulled over just beyond the school crossing, approximately 750M from the corner where the above-mentioned feat allegedly took place. All told I had driven less than 1KM from where I turned the key in the ignition to where I pulled over.
If the fine stands, that’ll be the end of my flawless 17 year driving record.
Update: I later did some tests of my own, and it turns out my acceleration estimates were pretty far off: our car with me at the wheel is good for 0-70KM/h in about 50~60m with a braking distance shorter than that, which does put the scenario into the realm of possibility. However, I wouldn’t have done that near my son’s school (we routinely bitch about people speeding near it) and my wife certainly wouldn’t have let me get away with such an act unknowingly. I’m adamant it didn’t happen, but I don’t think I can prove that in court.
Update #2 (8th August): It’s been nearly four weeks now and I still haven’t received a fine. Speaking to others in the same situation, it can take ages, or the fine can not arrive at all and I’ll just get a late notice with a late fee. The entire system is fucked, why not just give me the fine and a potential court date on the spot?
Update #3 (19th August): I called up Civic Compliance Victoria, who handle the state’s fines, and spoke to “Dakota” - they’re showing nothing on my licence number or my address, or searching by name. She said to give it another couple of weeks to make sure, or maybe contact the department that would have issued the fine, which I’m guessing is Horsham as it didn’t look like a highway patrol car. Is it too much to hope that the officer in question looked back over any evidence (do they have dash cams?) and decided she was mistaken?
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