VOA标准英语2010-Americans Speed into Trouble

Five years ago, Washington State troopers issued a ticket to a speeder less than half the time. Now, 63 percent of speed-related stops result in a fine.

Related Links:
National Motorists Association
Maximum speed limits in the 50 U.S. States

Auto¹ drivers around the world are bound to relate to this experience. You round a bend and see a police car idling on the shoulder. Your immediate² reaction is to tap the brakes, glance at the speedometer and pray you weren't speeding. In the United States, speeding tickets are at an all-time high in numerous jurisdictions³.

Speeding through speed traps

Washington State Trooper Brandy Kessler parks in the median of Interstate 5 just north of Olympia in Washington State. This is a well-known speed trap. Still, drivers race past her — and her radar⁴ speed gun. She identifies one car going over 105 in a 96 km/h zone, then a green SUV doing 111.

She decides to stop the SUV. Kessler sets down the radar gun. Then she pulls out onto the highway, lights flashing. No siren needed. The driver of the green SUV dutifully pulls to the side of the road.

When Trooper Brandy Kessler stops a car for speeding, she writes a ticket

"The reason I stopped you is because you're doing 111 back there," Kessler tells him when he rolls down his window. "Is there any reason you're 15 k over?" The driver mumbles⁵ an excuse, but the trooper isn't buying it. "Following traffic and not paying attention, huh?" she says as she gets out her pen and ticket book.

Like troopers around the nation, Kessler can exercise discretion⁶ in dealing⁷ with speeders. But she rarely lets them off with just a warning. "I write everybody for speeding," she says. "If I'm going to stop a car and put my life in danger and stand outside that car while traffic is going by at 96 or 112, then I'm going to write that ticket."

Changing behavior on the road

That approach conforms with the message coming down the chain of command.

John Batiste, chief of the Washington State Patrol, is pleased with his officers' efforts. "The policy that I told them I want instituted is less tolerance⁸ associated with speed in order to change bad driving behavior, to drive down speed-related collisions and it has worked."

As proof, he points to the numbers. Five years ago, troopers issued a ticket to a speeder less than half the time. Now, 63 percent of speed-related stops result in a fine. The rest get warnings.

Meanwhile, traffic fatalities⁹ in Washington State — as in the nation as a whole — are the lowest they've been in more than 50 years. There are many factors, but Chief Batiste is convinced tougher enforcement plays a role.

"Research tells us that an individual who receives a citation¹⁰ [drives carefully] for a longer period after receiving that citation versus¹¹ an individual who receives a warning. Within a matter of days, they go back to bad driving habits — speeding."

Citations¹² also went up in neighboring Oregon, but for a different reason.

In 2006, the Oregon State Police issued 49,000 speeding tickets. That jumped to 60,000 last year. That's purely¹³ a function of more troopers on the road, according to an agency spokesman. Oregon is hiring more officers after making deep layoffs¹⁴ years ago. Unlike in Washington, though, warnings are going up faster than tickets.

Many websites report the location of traffic enforcement cameras so drivers can avoid them.

Revenue generator¹⁵

The National Motorists Association is a group that publicizes notorious speed traps and helps members fight to have their tickets dismissed.

Its executive director offers a different take on the newly vigorous enforcement. Gary Biller contends cash-strapped American cities have turned to traffic violators for a quick bailout.

"We're definitely seeing a national trend over the last several months which we correlate directly to the last couple of years of tough financial times for both local and state governments," says Biller.

Biller says drivers going no more than 10-15 kilometers per hour over the limit would usually get a pass from the police, but no longer.

He bases that observation on anecdotal reports from association members around the country. "Where there's this kind of unwritten understanding that there is a few miles above the speed limit that's kind of a cushion, that seems to be dwindling¹⁶ to zero tolerance."

State and local police agencies vigorously deny there's a crackdown to generate more money. However, politicians have added surcharges to traffic tickets so that the present level of enforcement brings in more money.

The National Motorists Association has ranked states it considers most fair to drivers. Wyoming and Idaho topped the list. The two Western states have high maximum speed limits, no toll¹⁷ roads and no automated¹⁸ camera enforcement for speeding and red light runners.

Watch yourself, though, if you come to visit the U.S.A. and drive on the busy roads of lowest-ranked New Jersey¹⁹ and Ohio.
 

1 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

2 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

3 jurisdictions   

司法权( jurisdiction的名词复数 )； 裁判权； 管辖区域； 管辖范围

参考例句：

• Butler entreated him to remember the act abolishing the heritable jurisdictions. 巴特勒提醒他注意废除世袭审判权的国会法令。
• James I personally adjudicated between the two jurisdictions. 詹姆士一世亲自裁定双方纠纷。

4 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

5 mumbles   

含糊的话或声音，咕哝( mumble的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He always mumbles when he's embarrassed. 他感到难为情时说话就含糊不清了。
• When the old lady speaks she often mumbles her words. 这位老妇人说起话来常常含糊不清。

6 discretion   

n.谨慎；随意处理

参考例句：

• You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
• Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

8 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

9 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 citation   

n.引用，引证，引用文；传票

参考例句：

• He had to sign the proposition for the citation.他只好在受奖申请书上签了字。
• The court could issue a citation and fine Ms. Robbins.法庭可能会发传票，对罗宾斯女士处以罚款。

11 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

12 citations   

n.引用( citation的名词复数 )；引证；引文；表扬

参考例句：

• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Some dictionary writers use citations to show what words mean. 有些辞典的编纂者用引文作例证以解释词义。 来自辞典例句

13 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

14 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

15 generator   

n.发电机，发生器

参考例句：

• All the while the giant generator poured out its power.巨大的发电机一刻不停地发出电力。
• This is an alternating current generator.这是一台交流发电机。

16 dwindling   

adj.逐渐减少的v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The number of wild animals on the earth is dwindling. 地球上野生动物的数量正日渐减少。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority. 他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。 来自辞典例句

17 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

18 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

19 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。