1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Climate Change? Nahhh ...

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Riptide, Oct 23, 2015.

Page 223 of 352
  1. LanceyHoward

    LanceyHoward Well-Known Member

    I thought that if you refused to take a breathalyzer you could have your license automatically suspended. The courts have ruled that driving a car is a privilege, not a right. If driving was a "right" then it could not be licensed. The same logic is then used to decide if you can continue to legally drive. I am bit saying I agree with that but that is how courts have ruled.

    One other subject I find interesting is the uproar about states going to cash-free bail. All citizens are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. In our justice system that means that an affluent person indicted for a crime could make bail while a poor person frequently sat in jail The poor person was therefore essentially being punished before they were convicted.

    I am waiting for all the people who for all the people who complained about mask aandates as a violation of their rights, even though COVID has killed more people in this country per capita than WWII did, to stand up for some guy sitting in jail awaiting trial because he could not make bail on a burglary charge.
     
    Last edited: Jan 17, 2023
    LanceyHoward, Jan 17, 2023
    #2665
  2. MisterCreosote

    MisterCreosote Well-Known Member

    That’s not the case in Maryland. The goal is for the entire state to go cashless, but not all locations are there yet.

    The cash toll, when that was an option, is the same as the EZ Pass toll. If you don’t have an EZ Pass and go through a toll where cash isn’t an option, you pay what they call a “video toll,” which is just a nicer way of saying they took a picture of you not paying the toll and are penalizing you for the effort needed to mail a bill to your house.
     
    MisterCreosote, Jan 17, 2023
    #2666
  3. MisterCreosote

    MisterCreosote Well-Known Member

    Yep. It’s an automatic 1-year suspension in my little slice of paradise.

    More if you’ve refused more than once.
     
    MisterCreosote, Jan 17, 2023
    #2667
  4. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    It's the same @ the NY / NJ bridges. They got rid of the toll booths and put in the camera system. If you don't have an EZ Pass, you get billed by mail. It's not considered a penalty. It's just the "fare." Then, there are discounted fares for using E-Z Pass. Again, it's a matter of semantics. But for example, when you go over the GW Bridge, they advertise the toll ($17), and bill it by mail. They don't tell people they are being penalized for not having an E-Z Pass. They advertise the E-Z pass as giving a discount on the toll.
     
    The Big Ragu, Jan 17, 2023
    #2668
  5. dixiehack

    dixiehack Well-Known Member

    The same setup for the new I-65 bridge over the Ohio River. No booths, it either charges your transponder or snaps a photo of your plates and mails you a toll bill. Except I still haven’t gotten mine 17 months later.
     
    dixiehack, Jan 17, 2023
    #2669
  6. MisterCreosote

    MisterCreosote Well-Known Member

    They can call it whatever they want. That doesn’t change what it is.
     
    MisterCreosote, Jan 17, 2023
    #2670
  7. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    They still need probable cause to give you the breathalyzer. Like they saw you swerving all over the road. Or they smell alcohol on your breath. Or there is a bottle of vodka on the seat next to you.

    A sobriety checkpoint where they are pulling people over indiscriminately doesn't constitute probable cause. So it's a matter of what you give them.

    If you stare straight ahead and refuse to answer their "have you been drinking question?" it makes it harder for them to legitimately establish probable cause to administer a breathalyzer. If you pull your window down just enough to give them your license and registration and hear them, they can't claim that they smelled booze on your breath.

    They may violate your rights anyhow, but you are at least setting up a challenge to the constitutionality of the whole thing when you walk into court.
     
    The Big Ragu, Jan 17, 2023
    #2671
  8. MileHigh

    MileHigh Moderator Staff Member

    Same in Colorado with the growing number of toll lanes. No cash booths anymore. If you take the full route of the north/northeast/southeast/south toll to avoid going through downtown Denver, it costs $13.95 if have the EXPass sticker. If you don't and they send you a bill via your license plate, it costs $22.25. Toll rates through downtown and up in the mountains vary based on day/time/traffic.
     
    MileHigh, Jan 17, 2023
    #2672
  9. maumann

    maumann Well-Known Member

    The bridge from St. Pete to Pass-a-grille Beach used to be 40 cents each way. They've now taken the attendants out and charge $1 to the Sun Pass. Except if you don't have a Sun Pass account, they send you a $1 bill ... with a $3 handling charge. Since I'm coming back to Florida, I went ahead and created an online account which eliminated the junk fee but cost me $10.

    So I supposedly have a $9 credit.
     
    maumann, Jan 17, 2023
    #2673
  10. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    Tolls @ the NY bridges and tunnels also do different prices for peak and off peak times. There are also different E-ZPass discounts. Like if you live in Staten Island, your E-Z pass is heavily discounted on the Verrazano Bridge.
     
    The Big Ragu, Jan 17, 2023
    #2674
  11. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    The fact that it costs $17 to cross a damn bridge is a whole other level of bullshit.
     
    Batman, Jan 17, 2023
    #2675
    wicked, BTExpress and Driftwood like this.
  12. Azrael

    Azrael Well-Known Member

    https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2022/08...ust-the-tip-of-the-mtas-toll-evasion-iceberg/

    When MTA CEO Janno Leiber said back in April that the agency loses “something like in the $50 million range” every year thanks to people intentionally obscuring their license plates, he was just scratching the surface of the agency’s toll evasion problems.

    According to a Streetsblog analysis, the MTA lost a whopping $144 million to toll scofflaws last year, nearly triple the figure that Lieber cited.
     
    Azrael, Jan 17, 2023
    #2676
Page 223 of 352
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page