How to get your own back on the radar traps

[expat]

Thought you guys might find this interesting. So who's up to the task?

Four youths from Canberra, Australia pulled off a trick of breathtaking bravado in order to gain revenge on a mobile speed camera van operating in the area. Three of the group approached the van and distracted the operator's attention by asking a series of questions about how the equipment worked and how many cars the operator could catch in a day. Meanwhile, the fourth musketeer sneaked to the front of the van and unscrewed its numberplate. After bidding the van operator goodbye, the friends returned home, fixed the number plate to their car and drove through the camera's radar at high speed - 17 times. As a result, the automated billing system issued 17 speeding tickets to itself. Go Aussies!!

Throw another prawn on the barbie and have a beer!

[kees]

Kees.

[bell]

lol

[HawgRyder]

I saw a car parked on the side of the highway with a big sign "radar ahead" on the back....about 500 feet before you got to the radar van.
Police could not understand why no speeders that morning.
Other cop saw the sign...tried to arrest the driver....gave him some sort of ticket instead.
Guy goes to court (he's a lawyer)...wins the case....sign was not bad...instead, it promoted slower speeds, which is what the radar does....judge threw out the case.
OPP (provincial police) have taken to putting out signs of their own...with an old cop car down the road....no radar...but the same result....and way cheaper on vehicles and personnel.
Bob

[Chuck Moreland]

In the town I grew up in, they used to park a cop car with cardboard cop silouette in the driver's seat - complete with mustache and sunglasses.

They found that people would slow down, even though they knew it was a cutout! I know I did.

[targa911man]

There is hope for the youth of the world, or at least of Australia.

[Scooter]

How about these radar units placed around neighborhoods, you know the ones that are a big white box on wheels with a digital readout? My take on these, is that those individuals who are unintentionally speeding without noticing, will slow down. While those who are intentionally speeding will not even give it a second thought, or use the readout to check their speedometer calibration (don't know how accurate this is). It actually does make me slow down.

[twin plugged targa]

I knew of an aussie who was a bit of a tech wizard and decided to sort out the local cops with their radar speed trap which was same place each day.
He rigged up some kind of high power radar transmitter in his car approached the cop car at high speed and somehow overloaded the cops radar tranceiver and blew it up!!!!
Imagine that, a radar eliminator. Sorry don't know the facts but kniowing the guy I believe him!
If you could manufacture those, I think they would sell like hot cakes!!!
Ben

[ubiquity0]

Originally posted by Chuck Moreland
In the town I grew up in, they used to park a cop car with cardboard cop silouette in the driver's seat - complete with mustache and sunglasses.

They found that people would slow down, even though they knew it was a cutout! I know I did.

Was he eating a cardboard donut?

[yelcab1]

Originally posted by twin plugged targa

He rigged up some kind of high power radar transmitter in his car approached the cop car at high speed and somehow overloaded the cops radar tranceiver and blew it up!!!!
Imagine that, a radar eliminator. Sorry don't know the facts but kniowing the guy I believe him!
If you could manufacture those, I think they would sell like hot cakes!!!
Ben

In America, the Federal Communication Commision would get on your arse so fast you would not know what happened. They'll send the FBI knocking on your door, confiscate the machines, the parts, the cars, your bank accounts, call you a terrorist threat with that high power microwave emitter, and send you to Cuba (not the nice parts of Cuba, the jail cells) without the rights to see your wife, kids, lawyers, and certainly not a phone call.

I would not try that.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by Scooter84
How about these radar units placed around neighborhoods, you know the ones that are a big white box on wheels with a digital readout? My take on these, is that those individuals who are unintentionally speeding without noticing, will slow down. While those who are intentionally speeding will not even give it a second thought, or use the readout to check their speedometer calibration (don't know how accurate this is). It actually does make me slow down.

You never know when that sucker is going to start taking pictures and issuing tickets. I slow down.

On the empty squad car, Boulder City NV, had one of those with an inflatable cop 'driving.' Every once in a while, it was the real deal catching the over confident. You just never knew.

[ChrisBennet]

[howie944]

The empty "cruiser" creates what used to be called the "Halo" effect. Yep I'll wear this "halo" 'till I get about a mile or so down the road! As for the melting of the radar system by a transmitter...When I was an Air Force cop stationed in the cold country of Michigan (Upper Peninsula) at a now closed Air Force base populated with B-52s we just received our first set of radar guns for the Law Enforcement patrols to use. The breakage rate on the guns was unbelieveable. Then we found out why the guns were breaking at such a high rate. Seems the troopers were bored and would sit off the approach end of the runway and try to clock the speed of the incoming (landing) B-52s! We also had a fighter plane squadron there. Thank god they didn't try to clock those or we probably would've had a lot of burned hands from the melted speed guns. K-9 the old calibration tuning fork used to drive the dogs nuts also.

[howie944]

One more musing. For those of us fortunate enough to live in California they have taken it to another level to catch the over exuberant driver. I'm sure this is old news to the CA folks but how bout them Camaros? Sneaky bastitches... White or black Camaros with a 2 inch light bar on top. Light bar looks like ski rack in rear view. I won't even get into the Crown Vicks without any light bars! At least the Mustangs they used to use had regular light bars on em!

[Paul Franssen]

Like that Australian story, a bit anarchic, of course...

Over here (and in Germany, and many other places, I bet) there's actually radio broadcasts (and websites) quoting the day's hot radar spots, all this based on the hypothesis that a warned driver will drive legally slow, which is of course the point of the whole excercise (and not, as many believe, filling up the state's treasure chest). I (am made to)understand that Belgian statistics in fact (would) have determined that the administrative process costs more than the revenue (tickets)...

[dotorg]

Originally posted by Scooter84
How about these radar units placed around neighborhoods, you know the ones that are a big white box on wheels with a digital readout? My take on these, is that those individuals who are unintentionally speeding without noticing, will slow down. While those who are intentionally speeding will not even give it a second thought, or use the readout to check their speedometer calibration (don't know how accurate this is). It actually does make me slow down.

My V1 picks those things up well before I see it, but there are a few around town positioned just beyond a stoplight. Makes for a new game of "can I make the numbers turn red and blinking before I pass it".

In the 911, I can't. In the S4, no problemo.

[dotorg]

Originally posted by yelcab1
In America, the Federal Communication Commision would get on your arse so fast you would not know what happened. They'll send the FBI knocking on your door, confiscate the machines, the parts, the cars, your bank accounts, call you a terrorist threat with that high power microwave emitter, and send you to Cuba (not the nice parts of Cuba, the jail cells) without the rights to see your wife, kids, lawyers, and certainly not a phone call.

I would not try that.

Actually, it depends if you have your FCC radio operators license. I can broadcast up to 2500w on the frequencies used by radar guns, which would be enough to bake anything immediately in front of the magnetron. With a license its a bit less black and white, because the broadcast isn't illegal, but the power levels are inappropriate and its unclear to me if the interference would be illegal. (You can't cause interference to primary users of the spectrum, but I don't think radar guns actually are the primary users of the spectrum).

But in this age of Patriot Act, TIA, and other laws that would make Stalin proud in this country, you're right, you'd probably be branded a terrorist, held without anyone knowing for several years without justification, rushed through a secret military trial and sent away for life where no one will ever find you, and you can spend the rest of your days wondering how your life turned into a bad Soviet novel.

[djmcmath]

Originally posted by dotorg
Actually, it depends if you have your FCC radio operators license. I can broadcast up to 2500w on the frequencies used by radar guns, which would be enough to bake anything immediately in front of the magnetron. With a license its a bit less black and white, because the broadcast isn't illegal, but the power levels are inappropriate and its unclear to me if the interference would be illegal. (You can't cause interference to primary users of the spectrum, but I don't think radar guns actually are the primary users of the spectrum).

But in this age of Patriot Act, TIA, and other laws that would make Stalin proud in this country, you're right, you'd probably be branded a terrorist, held without anyone knowing for several years without justification, rushed through a secret military trial and sent away for life where no one will ever find you, and you can spend the rest of your days wondering how your life turned into a bad Soviet novel.

Actually, I think that here in the People's Republic of Washington (state), the Revised Code of Washington specifically calls out devices that interfere with police radar. Just a hunch, but even if you could legally operate on Ka-band, the fact that your signal is "interfering" with the police makes it against WA-state laws. Oh, and destruction of police property by blowing up their gun isn't going to make them very happy either.

OTOH, it would definitely grant you a brief moment of happiness, knowing you had done a great thing. You've scored another victory in the war against speed limits. You've taken one of the 1.6 million speed measuring devices out of commision forever by sacrificing your own life for the cause. Good work!

But back OT -- that's an outstanding idea those Aussies had. Proves the point that it's a stupid idea to take pictures of people's license plates. Can't tell you how many cases I've heard of where the wrong person was driving the car or something.


Dan

[HawgRyder]

I ran into a situation that I had not seen before...in Washington DC I think.
There were several traffic lights placed in the middle of the blocks....and if you were going too fast they turned red.
It took me a couple of lights to figure it out...and I'm sure the locals were not happy with me slowing down the flow.
Also...in Hamilton...on both of the main streets (1 east, 1 west)...the lights are set for 35 mph...you go faster...you stop a lot.....if you get it just right...you travel the entire width of the city without stopping.
Bob

[MFAFF]

We suffer a lot from 'cloning' here.

They check out what car you have, duplicate the tag and mount it on 'something similar'.

You ge tthe ticket and when the pic comes up it looks like your car.

Bingo you pay the fine, get the points and the bas'''ds get away with it.

If its a million miles from where you live then 'they' might listen to your case.

However its only a matter of time before somebody in London deceides that all those CCTV cameras can be used against the system. There are so many cameras that you can be tracked all the way. Dead easy to prove you where there and not here having your ass caught on film.....