When will New York speeding tickets cost you double the fine?

New York’s traffic laws create numerous categories of offenses. Speeding or traveling at speeds faster than the posted limit for an area is one of the most common offenses. In fact, many drivers habitually speed, assuming they won’t get a ticket if they don’t go too far over the limit or if they drive on certain roads.

When a police officer writes you a speeding ticket, you have to either pay a fine or fight back against the ticket. If you pay the ticket, your insurance costs may go up. If you have enough driving infractions, your license could be at risk, so it creates a whole other set of financial consequences.

For some unlucky drivers, their costs for a speeding ticket will be twice that of what other people would face for the same infraction. 

Location is what determines the amount of the ticket

People driving dangerously cause risk for others. In certain areas, they endanger people who are particularly vulnerable, like children in school. Other times, they endanger those who have no choice but to be in close proximity to moving traffic.

Irresponsible driving is one reason why road construction workers have so much risk on the job. New York lawmakers have adopted a special rule intended to protect those who work in road construction. If a police officer issues a ticket in a road construction zone, the fine associated with that ticket will be double what it usually would be. 

You can fight back against traffic tickets

Many people assume that the only offenses worth defending against are those that carry only a jail sentence. However, even traffic infractions can have a lasting, negative impact on your life. When it comes to an expensive construction zone speeding ticket, the act of defending against the ticket may pay for itself just because you don’t have to pay the fine.

Drivers have options for defending against a ticket. Sometimes they can challenge the accuracy of the speed established by the police officer, for example. Other times, they could challenge the classification of the area as a construction zone because there was no visible signage. Fighting back against construction zone tickets can help protect your driving privileges and your budget.