Avoid a Traffic Ticket (Driving Tips)

In our years of Traffic Attorney experience both on the road and in the courts, we have witnessed many traffic violations and resulting in traffic tickets NY (especially NYC Traffic Tickets) and NY Speeding tickets which could have been easily avoided. Here are a few tips:

1. If you come to stopped traffic on a high speed roadway, turn on your flashers. A hit in the rear, while usually not your fault, can cause severe injuries, and those flashers will often wake up the road-dazed driver behind you.

2. Look at the whole traffic pattern. Frequently I see drivers “bull” their way through traffic. It is plain that they are looking no further than the car ahead, and at the end of several miles, a steady driver will make more progress and upset no others – the “bull” will tailgate until the car ahead passes, even if this nets no real distance.

3. Never pass others at a high rate of speed. This will upset some motorists who will use the cell phone and call the Police. Enough calls and you are the “person of interest” for the Officer assigned to that section of road that day. Not Good.

4. Keep your registration and inspection stickers up to date, and don’t let your insurance lapse. The penalty for “no insurance” is worse that “driving while intoxicated”. Really.

5. We all use the roads together. Attitude is important, and if you are angry or depressed or frustrated, you are now that way in a two ton or more vehicle…. think about it.

6. If you are pulled over, be polite…even if you think you are right.

7. Never, ever, ever, plead guilty without discussing the case with an attorney. You cannot trust legal advice from the “internet” – each State is different, indeed each Town, and each Judge. The only correct answers will come from someone with actual on the ground knowledge.

8. Buy a good tire pressure gauge and learn to use it. You will save gas and your car will be much safer all around.

9. When the red/blue lights go on, game over. Running from the police will turn a minor traffic violation into a set of misdemeanors which will be a lot more troublesome than your XXX in a YY zone ticket. I have had many situations where the driver/rider learned the hard way that “You can outrun the Mopar, but you can’t outrun the Motorola.”

10. SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT. If someone wants to speed, it’s not your problem unless you are employed by the State. Sticking in the left lane causes pile ups behind you, a much more dangerous situation.