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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: speeding

speeding stories: 13 news summaries

(Newser) - If you think that pricey speeding ticket is unfair, just look at Finland, where fines are based on income. Mental Floss takes a look at five doozies:
  • In 2002, a Nokia exec on a Harley got hit with a whopping $103,600 fine for cruising at 47mph in a
... More »

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speeding driving Finland cars traffic violation wealthy speeding ticket

(Newser) - A driver leaped onto his stolen truck as it pulled out of Georgia parking lot and held on for a 70-mile high-speed cop chase, reports CNN. The driver called police from his cell phone from the truck, and clung to the rig as the thief gunned it. The getaway was... More »

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Atlanta crime police theft Georgia speeding hijack speed truckers trucks car theft police chase

(Newser) - A Norwegian man faces a stiff fine and driving ban for having sex behind the wheel, the AFP reports. Cops thought he was just speeding—about 80 mph in a 60 zone—until they pulled closer and found his view obstructed “because her back was in the way.”... More »

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(Newser) - What's Italian for "leadfoot"? A Milanese man going 168mph was busted on four separate highway cameras in less than hour, ANSA reports. He was driving for his employer, whose lawyers argue that he should be responsible for just one infraction. They said they also plan to cite a... More »

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 Biker Takes Son on 
 122mph Joyride, 
 Lands in Jail 

Brit was riding with unprotected 14-year-old son

(Newser) - A British biker has been sentenced to 6 months in jail after police caught him screaming by at 122mph with his 14-year-old son, who wasn’t wearing any safety gear, holding onto the seat with his bare hands, the BBC reports. The man, Robert Bennett, 47, had earlier pleaded guilty... More »

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Matt Dillon Clocked at
106 mph

Crash star faces
possible 3 months
in Vermont jail

(Newser) - Actor Matt Dillon was arrested for speeding after a police radar caught him zooming northbound on a Vermont highway at 106 mph, reports Reuters. The Crash star was driving a rented 2009 Chevy Impala in a 65 mph zone. Dillon, 44, faces up to three months in jail and a... More »

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Vermont court speeding jail actor New Yorkers Matt Dillon

Say it Ain't So, Joba: Pitcher Catches DUI

Yankees' Chamberlain arrested in Nebraska on 3 charges

(AP) - New York Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain was arrested and charged with driving under the influence, speeding, and having an open container of alcohol in his vehicle. Nebraska State Patrol said Chamberlain was stopped for speeding near his hometown of Lincoln at about 1am yesterday. Chamberlain was taken to the Cornhusker... More »

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OPINION

Speed Limits Aren't Saving Lives, So Make Cars Slower

Government's priorities elsewhere, but cars that can't top 75 would save gas, too

(Newser) - Speeding contributes to 13,000 US road deaths each year, and, at 30% of traffic fatalities, places only slightly behind alcohol, at 39%, Kent A. Sepkowitz writes in the New York Times. While preventing drunk driving is a complex problem requiring cooperation of motorists, police, and educators, speeding can be... More »

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car accident drunk driving speeding fatalities road safety speed limit

Road Deaths Drop as Gas Price Soars

Study estimates
$4 gas will prevent 1,000 deaths a month

(Newser) - The record-breaking gas prices putting the squeeze on American drivers may be a lifesaver for some, reports the AP. Experts crunched 20 years of data and discovered that auto deaths fell 2.3% for every 10% hike in gas prices. When gas went up, people drove slower and bought safer... More »

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motorists speeding driving gas prices road safety teenage drivers oil prices

 New Cell Service 
 Warns of Speed Traps 

Trapster helps motorists avoid tickets

(Newser) - Motorists intent on avoiding tickets can now rely on a mobile phone service designed to warn them about radar traps and red-light cameras, the AP reports. Called Trapster, the service uses wireless Internet or a phone’s GPS capabilities to determine location, and gives users an alert if they are... More »

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Octogenarian Busted for Racing

New traffic-safety law applies to 85-year-old speedster

(Newser) - An 85-year-old speedster has been charged with street racing after a Canadian cop clocked him going 100mph, the Globe and Mail reports. When the officer tried to pull over the rocketing Oldsmobile Intrigue, the heedless octogenarian sped up, weaving between lanes in icy conditions to maintain speed. When he... More »

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Canada speeding old age Oldsmobile Intrigue street racing senior citizens speed limit

Slow Down! Your Neighbors May Have Radar Guns

Police enlist residents to catch speeders

(Newser) - No more flying under your neighbors’ radar: Police departments across the US are enlisting residents to help catch speeders, USA Today reports. Officers loan radar guns to regular folks;  drivers going, typically, more than 13mph over the limit receive warning letters. And it’s not just teens who are... More »

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Who Knew a Prius Was a
Hot Rod?

Al Gore III, busted at over 100 mph, shows speedy side of green

(Newser) - As the exhaust clears following Al Gore III's joy-ride drug bust, an astonished public has zeroed in, not on the former veep's son, but on his little-Prius-that-could. Clocked at over  100mph before he was pulled over, Gore shattered the assumption that the Toyota hybrid sacrifices speed for fuel efficiency, the... More »

13 Stories