Oregonians - Speed Advice

[BCKRider]

My thought is that most "performance awards" are deserved. If you want to go 20 mph over the posted limit in some small town in Oregon, be my guest. You'll just have to pay the local municipality's "speeding tax". If you don't want to pay the tax, don't speed. It really is that simple.

I love reading the posts where red light and speed zone cameras are treated as if they are some Orwellian plot to eliminate our freedoms. Don't want a red light camera ticket? Don't run red lights. Don't want to get a speeding ticket when in Oregon? Don't speed in Oregon. You don't need a doctorate to figure this out.

If you do want to speed in Oregon - or anywhere else for that matter - be prepared to pay the speeding tax. But don't whine about the ticket you got from the local LEO because you decided to blaze through all the small towns on your way to the rally.

I think automated traffic enforcement is a wonderful thing. It frees up LEOs to deter actual crime, eliminates the need for officers to make court appearances to explain how Johnny Crotchrocket was going 15 over the limit, and keeps our communities safer. Win-win-win.

I believe most complaints are about ridiculously low speed limits; mostly on highways but sometimes in small towns too. I believe the Texas model (at least for highways) that Paul Glaves described earlier in this thread SHOULD be the model for all states. Post a "fast but safe" limit, then enforce it. Unless Oregon (and Washington) have changed since I last rode their highways, there are many roads posted at 60 which in Texas would be 75. The low limits certainly save some gas, but I suspect the main goal is a "speed tax" that has nothing to do with the environment, energy policy, or making the roads safer.

It is also a fact that those low speed limits, in many areas, are only occasionally enforced - which leads the majority of motorists to move their speeds up to the real "safe speed," so they can again be fined. I think citizens SHOULD protest bad laws and try to get them changed. But "vehicle disobedience" is probably a bad idea.

We always need to deal with "what is," not "what should be" to keeps both our bodies and wallets intact.

[mpmarty]

I live and ride in Oregon. I tend to ride aggressively and I've been stopped for speeding five times in three years. I've not yet gotten a ticket. Just warnings delivered politely by local deputies and troopers. I know sooner or later I'll get nailed and when I do I'll pay up. I use an Escort detector and it is in plain sight on my bike. Most of the stops were radar enforcement and the "warning" issued by the detector was simply letting me know I was toast.

[Shaun09]

In Oregon, the only speed posted above 55 mph on any road is on non-urban sections of I-5, I-205, and I-84 (either 60 or 65 mph). Elsewhere, the speed is set by the 85th-percentile speed of motorists as determined by a speed study submitted by local jurisdictions and approved by the state.

Many people here travel less than 10 mph over on the interstate and other highways without much concern. Close to or more than 10 mph over posted on rural roads is asking for trouble (with less tolerance in urban areas and small towns).

I don't advocate for speeding, but rather report what the common practice is here in Oregon. Ride safe.

Cheers!