AL.com has posted an interesting article that breaks down some common misconceptions about speeding violations. According to the linked article, a state police spokesperson said, “The speed limit is the speed limit, and that’s the speed you can go without encountering a trooper.” But a more detailed analysis by the AL.com authors revealed that only 72 speeding tickets, roughly 1% issued by Alabama troopers last year, were given to drivers going only 1 to 9-mph over the speed limit.  Of those 72 drivers, only 2 were ticketed with traveling less than 5-mph over the limit. Some additional discussion is provided regarding the accuracy of speed measurement devices and how that may play into an officer’s decision to ticket drivers at speeds close to but exceeding the posted speed limit.

The article also mentions the rather bizarre fact that the highest speeding ticket issued in Alabama went to a man driving 130-mph, double the 65-mph limit, in a “construction vehicle”.