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Oregonians - Speed Advice

As the OP I would like to thank all of you for your replies. I think my "general advice" has been confirmed, with a few caveats: 1. Don't exceed the speed limit AT ALL in western Oregon, unless there are a number of Oregon plates ahead of you doing just that. 2. Assume ALL small town speed limits are rigidly enforced. 3. Stop for all yellow lights unless you are pretty certain you will be rear-ended if you do. The idea of "riding a little faster than most traffic" which many riders endorse as a safety measure, may well get you in financial trouble in Oregon. (BTW, I agree with another poster that WA state speed limits/enforcement can be just as low and enforced.)

I completely agree with Paul Glaves about the Texas approach, if I read him right. "Post a fast but safe speed - presumably safe during the day and good weather - and then enforce it. This means most traffic is going the same speed, the major criteria for fewer accidents. But, you ain't in Texas now. Staying out of trouble with the law is never dumb. There are roads in eastern Oregon where you certainly can play with speed if you wish, but "just obey the speed limits" should be your starting point. Deviate from that only when you have considered ALL the perils.

Ride safely and have a great time. See you at the rally.
 
I always thought yellow / amber meant "stop if you can". Another poster said he was ticketed entering on yellow. Can you say more about this?

Here in Ontario, Canada, a LEO can ticket you if it appears to them that you could have stopped. I've never seen that happen, and it seems that most everyone speeds through. Every time I go through and think I should have tried harder to stop, I check the rear-view mirror and see at least one, maybe two cars following me through!

Big city aggressive, I guess.

Yellow means you need to clear the intersection. At least in CO, if you enter while yellow, you are good, even if turns red while still in it. Some discretion is given to road and traffic conditions for making that decision. If you enter while red, you have run thru a red light, and are ticketable. You are not supposed to speed up to get thru the yellow, but i've yet to see a ticket for doing so. However, my friend, riding a white m/c, was given a ticket for going thru a yellow (in Golden), and description was "black m/c" on the ticket. Judge upheld the ticket, told him his tires were black, so the bike was black. Jerk.
 
My wife was stopped several years ago for some violation (I don't remember exactly what). She was so flustered that she gave the cop the registration for our Coleman trailer instead of for the van she was driving. He wrote it up for a 'Coleman Trlr'. The judge didn't care about that either. Go figure...
 
My thought is that most "performance awards" are deserved. If you want to go 20 mph over the posted limit in some small town in Oregon, be my guest. You'll just have to pay the local municipality's "speeding tax". If you don't want to pay the tax, don't speed. It really is that simple.

I love reading the posts where red light and speed zone cameras are treated as if they are some Orwellian plot to eliminate our freedoms. Don't want a red light camera ticket? Don't run red lights. Don't want to get a speeding ticket when in Oregon? Don't speed in Oregon. You don't need a doctorate to figure this out.

If you do want to speed in Oregon - or anywhere else for that matter - be prepared to pay the speeding tax. But don't whine about the ticket you got from the local LEO because you decided to blaze through all the small towns on your way to the rally.

I think automated traffic enforcement is a wonderful thing. It frees up LEOs to deter actual crime, eliminates the need for officers to make court appearances to explain how Johnny Crotchrocket was going 15 over the limit, and keeps our communities safer. Win-win-win.
 
My thought is that most "performance awards" are deserved. If you want to go 20 mph over the posted limit in some small town in Oregon, be my guest. You'll just have to pay the local municipality's "speeding tax". If you don't want to pay the tax, don't speed. It really is that simple.

I love reading the posts where red light and speed zone cameras are treated as if they are some Orwellian plot to eliminate our freedoms. Don't want a red light camera ticket? Don't run red lights. Don't want to get a speeding ticket when in Oregon? Don't speed in Oregon. You don't need a doctorate to figure this out.

If you do want to speed in Oregon - or anywhere else for that matter - be prepared to pay the speeding tax. But don't whine about the ticket you got from the local LEO because you decided to blaze through all the small towns on your way to the rally.

I think automated traffic enforcement is a wonderful thing. It frees up LEOs to deter actual crime, eliminates the need for officers to make court appearances to explain how Johnny Crotchrocket was going 15 over the limit, and keeps our communities safer. Win-win-win.

You're spot on with your common-sense approach to riding in a responsible manner.

However, in this club, you could get stoned making comments like that.

Meet me at the Amtrack station in Milwaukee at noon Friday - wear a black fedora - I will put you in touch with the Witness Protection Program for MOA members. :hide
 
My thought is that most "performance awards" are deserved. If you want to go 20 mph over the posted limit in some small town in Oregon, be my guest. You'll just have to pay the local municipality's "speeding tax". If you don't want to pay the tax, don't speed. It really is that simple.

I love reading the posts where red light and speed zone cameras are treated as if they are some Orwellian plot to eliminate our freedoms. Don't want a red light camera ticket? Don't run red lights. Don't want to get a speeding ticket when in Oregon? Don't speed in Oregon. You don't need a doctorate to figure this out.

If you do want to speed in Oregon - or anywhere else for that matter - be prepared to pay the speeding tax. But don't whine about the ticket you got from the local LEO because you decided to blaze through all the small towns on your way to the rally.

I think automated traffic enforcement is a wonderful thing. It frees up LEOs to deter actual crime, eliminates the need for officers to make court appearances to explain how Johnny Crotchrocket was going 15 over the limit, and keeps our communities safer. Win-win-win.

I believe most complaints are about ridiculously low speed limits; mostly on highways but sometimes in small towns too. I believe the Texas model (at least for highways) that Paul Glaves described earlier in this thread SHOULD be the model for all states. Post a "fast but safe" limit, then enforce it. Unless Oregon (and Washington) have changed since I last rode their highways, there are many roads posted at 60 which in Texas would be 75. The low limits certainly save some gas, but I suspect the main goal is a "speed tax" that has nothing to do with the environment, energy policy, or making the roads safer.

It is also a fact that those low speed limits, in many areas, are only occasionally enforced - which leads the majority of motorists to move their speeds up to the real "safe speed," so they can again be fined. I think citizens SHOULD protest bad laws and try to get them changed. But "vehicle disobedience" is probably a bad idea.

We always need to deal with "what is," not "what should be" to keeps both our bodies and wallets intact.
 
I live and ride in Oregon. I tend to ride aggressively and I've been stopped for speeding five times in three years. I've not yet gotten a ticket. Just warnings delivered politely by local deputies and troopers. I know sooner or later I'll get nailed and when I do I'll pay up. I use an Escort detector and it is in plain sight on my bike. Most of the stops were radar enforcement and the "warning" issued by the detector was simply letting me know I was toast.
 
In Oregon, the only speed posted above 55 mph on any road is on non-urban sections of I-5, I-205, and I-84 (either 60 or 65 mph). Elsewhere, the speed is set by the 85th-percentile speed of motorists as determined by a speed study submitted by local jurisdictions and approved by the state.

Many people here travel less than 10 mph over on the interstate and other highways without much concern. Close to or more than 10 mph over posted on rural roads is asking for trouble (with less tolerance in urban areas and small towns).

I don't advocate for speeding, but rather report what the common practice is here in Oregon. Ride safe.

Cheers!
 
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