Montana Drivers? (Billings, Missoula, Great Falls: legally, estimate, farm)

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by YOU-CANT-EAT-SCENERY

I kinda doubt it Heck we can't even sell our houses here now, with the market crash.

Here's a strange one: there's a property I was looking at out near Three Forks, but finally passed on it cuz 90% of it is in flood plain, and you can see where in some previous flood year, the river came through and took the road out about 30 yards from the house. So it got sold for $219k. NOW it's back on the market at $599k, with the addition of 20 more acres of flood plain (but omigosh, now it has river frontage! With active bank erosion.) WTF? Gotta be owned by some realtor who thinks this is a great way to unload his unbuildable 20 acres that was serendipitously next door to an existing house (okay, it's an *old* doublewide trailer, but still a "house" in realtorspeak).

[StuckPA]

Originally Posted by meadowlark3

Back in the 80's I was visiting family in the NE corner, and on one of my several trips back and forth on highway 16 between Culbertson and Sidney I was doing a smooth 70 or something like that (2 lane highway, but 2 vehicles in an hour or something!). Naturally, the law was sitting somewhere and came out to pursue me. I knew I was caught dead to rights, so just stopped as quickly as possible, was courteous to the nice officer, gave him my California driver's license and anticipated making courteous small talk as we wrapped up the ticket signing, etc. Then as he walked up to my window with the little clipboard with the ticket and to return my driver's license, he said, "That'll be $5." I'm sorry to report I stared at him and said, "You have GOT to be kidding." He was not kidding. He was dead serious. I was about to bust up laughing as the shock receded and, I'm sorry to say, I did have to ask because the smallest bill I had was a twenty, "Do you have change?" I really thought I was going to lose it. Of course, he had change!! This was during the years when the Montana was delightfully stiffing the feds by refusing to charge high prices for speeding tickets but knew they had to issue the tickets in order to receive highway grant funds. So I paid the nice man my $5 and went on my way, laughing my head off.

What's not funny is that if you don't have the money on the spot then you go right to jail(?)

[jimj]

I think it's $20 now, and having not been pulled over in years I don't know if you can still pay the officer. Had the same thing happen to me in SC and I thought I was going to fall out of the car when he asked me to pay right there! If I remember right it was $25 and he said "you can pay me here or follow me into town and it'll most likely double.... Guess what I did?

[ElkHunter]

I got nailed a couple months ago. 10 mph over. $55 on the spot.

[dumpstermcnuggets]

Originally Posted by meadowlark3

The one Montana driving experience that still freaks me out (Montana native, go back and drive through as frequently as possible, love everything about still) is dealing with the 6+% grades on the interstate west of Missoula. I find myself hurtling downhill, doing 80+mph and desperately trying to not be killed by those rigs pulling 2 (or 3?) trailers behind them. THAT is flat scary! I have no grudge against the truckers...our family has always been involved in one way or another, but understanding doesn't stop the adrenaline!

Another funny (on me). Back in the 80's I was visiting family in the NE corner, and on one of my several trips back and forth on highway 16 between Culbertson and Sidney I was doing a smooth 70 or something like that (2 lane highway, but 2 vehicles in an hour or something!). Naturally, the law was sitting somewhere and came out to pursue me. I knew I was caught dead to rights, so just stopped as quickly as possible, was courteous to the nice officer, gave him my California driver's license and anticipated making courteous small talk as we wrapped up the ticket signing, etc. Then as he walked up to my window with the little clipboard with the ticket and to return my driver's license, he said, "That'll be $5." I'm sorry to report I stared at him and said, "You have GOT to be kidding." He was not kidding. He was dead serious. I was about to bust up laughing as the shock receded and, I'm sorry to say, I did have to ask because the smallest bill I had was a twenty, "Do you have change?" I really thought I was going to lose it. Of course, he had change!! This was during the years when the Montana was delightfully stiffing the feds by refusing to charge high prices for speeding tickets but knew they had to issue the tickets in order to receive highway grant funds. So I paid the nice man my $5 and went on my way, laughing my head off.

Wow, reading that story made me really laugh, and was one of the more interesting stories I've read on citydata in a long time. Especially since I've always heard of the supposed myth about Montana being one of the few states not to crack down on drivers who speed, due to the fact I recall that in either the late 90s or early 2000s, Montana briefly removed having any sorta speed limit at all on their interstates(with one being reinstated later). Guess for all I know, MT needed that fed highway funding revenue, and is now like any other state again, when it comes to speeding tickets.

Edit: After later seeing jimj's post 2 posts above mine, maybe low fines for speeding tickets are still the norm in a low number of parts of the country

[be_a_light]

Originally Posted by dumpstermcnuggets

Edit: After later seeing jimj's post 2 posts above mine, maybe low fines for speeding tickets are still the norm in a low number of parts of the country

Traffic tickets here are about $20. $40 if you speed at night. $20.53 for Canadians. That's what is said in the paper this week anyway ...

Our speed problem is Canadians coming over the border and driving 65, but they are reading their metric scale which is the equivalent of 45 mph. Slow kills.

[jimj]

I just followed a canadian through town (speed limit 25) at 55 mph, weaving in and out of traffic and cutting people off. This is the norm here, people come down from Glacier going to Aspenfish and figure they can go whatever speed they want. Man I'm getting real tired of it especially now while it's snowing.

[be_a_light]

Aspenfish! That kills me

[StuckPA]

Originally Posted by jimj

I just followed a canadian through town (speed limit 25) at 55 mph, weaving in and out of traffic and cutting people off. This is the norm here, people come down from Glacier going to Aspenfish and figure they can go whatever speed they want. Man I'm getting real tired of it especially now while it's snowing.

Ah forget it then,I like Montana but not enough to be endangered by speeding drivers. I can get that here in PA.

[jimj]

Originally Posted by StuckPA

Ah forget it then,I like Montana but not enough to be endangered by speeding drivers. I can get that here in PA.

Well the nice part here is you can sign the ticket. Called the MHP and reported this idiot and will go in and sign the ticket Monday. Oh, and if he says he wasn't there, well darn, then how did my cell get a picture of you??
Since I've lived here I've signed 2 tickets, one for a teenager doing 50 down our 20 mph street. Careless driving ticket stuck like glue, teen got suspended for 6 months I believe.