Camping trip, and speeding fine

It was a nice little camping trip, until on the way home. I went to Gnaala Mia campsite, a really nice bushland setting, with very private camping sites, each one with its own tables and seats and a drum in which to have a fire. Even cut wood is supplied. No electricity, but a nice kitchen with rain water tank.

It is run by the Department of Parks and Wildlife, here is the website:

https://parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/site/gnaala-mia-campground

Here is my tent setup:

The campsite is near Wandering, south-east of Perth, about a two hour drive. Well, almost three hours for me, meandering along.

I came back driving up the Great Southern Highway, which terminates at the Great Northern Highway, where I turn left heading toward Perth.

It is that intersection where I got caught out. The speed limit on the Great Southern Highway is mostly 100km/h (62 miles/h), but *apparently* there is a sign for 80km/h (50 miles/h) about 5km before the intersection, or so the officer told me. Which I didn't see, and I was clocked at 102km/h (63 miles/h).

I need to explain something. I am always very careful to drive within the speed limit. Always watch out for speed signs. The only times that I have been booked for speeding is when I have been caught unawares.
In Western Australia, speed fines are a major source of income for the State government. On country roads, police officers hide where they know they will catch the unwary.

In other words, it is not about catching those who are deliberately speeding, it is about scoring fines. If they were after the deliberate speeders, they would position themselves on the open road, not at tricky spots where, apart from unfortunate placement of a speed sign, there are no other reasons to slow down.

This situation needs to be understood. This is where I was caught speeding:

The width of that image is about 5km, and I was heading west, toward the intersection. I came to the intersection, slowly, I might add, then turned left into the Great Eastern Hwy. A complete stop is not required, as there is a lane that merges into the Great Eastern Highway.

Google URL:

https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Lake+Manaring/@-31.8774983,116.3069348,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x2a32dbe1d3c5322d:0xb7ad666eb582fae3!8m2!3d-31.8775!4d116.3244444

Anyway, I had just turned onto the G.E. Hwy, when a police car came around the same intersection with all its lights flashing, and I pulled over.

The officer asked did I see the 80km/h sign, I replied "no", he said it was about 5km before the intersection. I must have blinked when I was passing it, sure didn't see it. Nor are there any other visual cues that I should be slowing down. Look at the image -- bushland and farmland, just your typical countryside, hardly any bends.

There is a petrol station on the intersection, and as soon as I spotted it and the intersection, I slowed down. But that was too late, the 80km/h limit apparently started some km's before.

God, they are sneaky. Some of them anyway. He was apologetic, said that he would have liked to just issue a caution, but his partner was probably already writing out a ticket in the car. Unlikely story, as he then took my driver's license back to his car, the partner came out and gave me a breathalyser, then the first officer returned with my driver's license and a ticket -- a AU$400 fine and 6 demerit points.

What I find particularly aggravating about this situation is that I try so hard to always stay within the speed limit, but there are some police officers who are out to catch a small lapse on the part of people like me. I know that I just have to accept it philosophically, but still it is annoying. So, letting off some steam by posting about it to this blog!

I thought maybe I should post the name and number of the police officer, but decided against it. Why target just one officer, when others also use the same tactics?

One more thing that I should mention. He told me that I was clocked at 102km/h, however, on the ticket is written "D/S 106/80  A/S 104/80".

P.S.: After reading the above, maybe you are thinking "Barry, it was unintentional, but you did break the law!" Yes. To give a bit more credit to the officer, I think that he might have let me off with a caution if my speed was a tad lower. Oh well, I'm a senior citizen, allowed to be grumpy! Reckon in future I will try and avoid that road between Great Eastern Hwy and York, as the speed limit goes up and down like a yoyo.

Tags: ethos