For those that maybe considering driving thru Arizona, please make sure you avoid Goodyear, AZ and here is why.
It seems that their LEO's are a bit over zealous in writing tickets to visitors. One of our friends from the Montana's Owner Club forum was driving thru their town when he was pulled over for no other reason than having only one license plate on the front of his truck pulling his 5'er. The catch is that his home state of Missouri does not issue license plates for the rear of trucks over a certain weight and stipulates they are to be on the front of the truck. The Goodyear officer said that did not matter and he was in violation of Arizona law so he wrote him up for $165. This friend called the Arizona Highway Patrol who noted that the Goodyear officer was wrong and that if he took it too court he would have the ticket reversed.
He wrote the Chief of Police in Goodyear and got no where. Since it looks like the folks of Goodyear do not enjoy visitors to their town and do not need the business revenue as they are generating it thru issuing of tickets, we are not going to spend our hard earned money in Goodyear, ever.
-- Edited by bigboomer on Wednesday 13th of March 2013 04:17:42 AM
Racerguy said
01:41 PM Mar 12, 2013
Boomer can you clear something up for me?......You said his home state doesn't issue plates for trucks over a certain weight but then says they stipulate it be on the front.If it isn't issued how can it be stipulated to be on the front? Maybe I'm missing something? Also you can't read anything on the link unless you belong to the forum.
-- Edited by Racerguy on Tuesday 12th of March 2013 02:29:27 PM
bigboomer said
02:33 PM Mar 12, 2013
Yep, that is exactly what the AHP told our friend. The Missouri SP also told him to fight it. With something like this it usually comes down to the old "the are passing thru so they will not contest and just mail the fine in" figuring that whoever they issue one to from out of state that they will not come back for court.
-- Edited by bigboomer on Tuesday 12th of March 2013 02:51:37 PM
bigboomer said
09:10 PM Mar 12, 2013
Racerguy,
Sorry, hopefully this clears it up. Our fellow RV'er is from Missouri and trucks over 18,000#'s are only issued one license plate and the Missouri law states it must be located on the front of the truck (figuring that most of these trucks will be towing something and the rear plate would not be readable).
Sorry as well on the link, forgot you need to be registered to see the conversations.
Les
Racerguy said
09:27 PM Mar 12, 2013
Thanks...that clears it up.Sounds like "Barney Fife" needs to get his laws straight.Licence plate location/law normally defaults to state of issue I would think.
Racerguy said
09:41 PM Mar 12, 2013
If I were him I would at least make sure the State Attorney General of Arizona is aware of what is going on.As an aside I'm glad I read this since I'm going to Goodyear tomorrow to look at a classic car for sale.I'll be on my best behavior.
cherylbrv said
11:15 PM Mar 12, 2013
So what is the bottom line when traveling - are you supposed to know the motor vehicle laws in every state you pass through? I thought only the laws that applied to the state the vehicle was registered in would be the case.
Lucky Mike said
12:16 AM Mar 13, 2013
In non moving vehicle violations not to include safety violations.....all laws pertaining give reciprocity rights to the state of domicile.....
in other words, his home state....
phyllen said
12:20 AM Mar 13, 2013
It could drive one bonkers trying to know each states law. For example, my home state of NJ law is that when driving on the NJ Turnpike and towing, it must be with 4 wheels down. That means no tow dollys. When we had a motorhome, we towed with a dolly. On the Turnpike! No one ever stopped us at the toll booths or the NJ State Police. Bet they didn't know that law either. I found out when I read a listing of various state laws about towing. I am thinking it was in an atlas.
Racerguy said
12:52 AM Mar 13, 2013
Knowing the specific laws of each state is impossible but beware there is an old saying a Judge said to me once....Young Man... ignorance of the law is NOT an excuse.
cherylbrv said
01:21 AM Mar 13, 2013
Exactly, Racerguy.... so what are RV'ers supposed to do?
Terry and Jo said
01:52 AM Mar 13, 2013
Ahem.....
To start with, stay out of California. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about the issue so much since most police officers will notice the out-of-state tag and do nothing about it. If you get an official, officer or judge, that wants to do otherwise, it won't make a difference. The Goodyear LEO's (Law Enforcement Officers) are ignoring what they can to get more money.
Watch driving across Kansas. The towns there like to drop speed limits quickly when going into towns. You may only get one sign stating something like "45 MPH Ahead" just about 1/8 of a mile from the dropped limit.
So, the big watchword is to not do anything to get their attention and allow them the option of stopping you.
Terry
MarkS said
02:16 AM Mar 13, 2013
Nearly every state issues only one apportioned tag and it goes on the front of the tow vehicle. Every DOT officer out there knows it but there aren't any local Leo's that are dot trained. Sounds like MO has applied that same rule to trucks over a certain weight and that makes perfect sense. As far as AZ goes, I still have a brand new front tag for my BMW that I never put on it because I didn't have a place to put it and they never seemed to care. But they did start hammering people who moved to the state and didn't get their tags changed to AZ.
In CA I drove my car around for a whole year with expired tags. Nobody said anything until I went to renew for 2011. Those fools at DMV wanted to charge me for two years worth of tags. Well I called them on that right now! The gentlemen showed me that the registration I had was a year out of date. I told him, "That damned old fool forgot to renew the tags." He asked me who that would have been and I looked down at my feet and sheepishly said, "Me". We laughed, I paid, and everything was fine.
PIEERE said
02:42 AM Mar 13, 2013
Sounds like the towns in Florida on 301 South of I-10; Lawty (The silver Bullet ); Starke (Starke raving Mad ); and Waldo (Waldo Willy ). The speed after you pass the truck stop increases to 65 MPH. then for 10 or so miles until Lawtys' Town Limits then quickly drops to 35MPH. SB likes to sit right along the old motel on the right side. Starke can be anywhere and Waldo Willy any place he can hide.
Racerguy said
03:13 AM Mar 13, 2013
cherylbrv wrote:
Exactly, Racerguy.... so what are RV'ers supposed to do?
Cheryl,for the most part stories like this are the exception rather than the rule.We covered the Country coast to coast twice without one traffic stop.I wouldn't worry a lot about it.
RVKevi said
03:13 AM Mar 13, 2013
We drove 301 twice last week, PIEERE! And you're right. The changing speed limits really keep you on your toes!
TXRVr said
04:11 PM Mar 13, 2013
LEOs can't be expected to know all the details of another state's transportation code. Most that enforce traffic laws will only have access to a code manual for their state (that's so that they can put the correct infraction info on your ticket). And, I don't expect them to take my word for it. So I believe in an ounce of prevention. It doesn't take much effort to Google search situations one may find themselves in with respect to motor vehicle laws while traveling in different states. For those odd situations, like the plate on the front of the truck instead of the back, it can be printed and carried in one's vehicle or RV. Except for those Goodyear situations involving the uneducated and less than professional LEO, I suspect that you will be doing yourself and the officer a favor by having that printed information handy.
As can be seen in the last block of the chart on this site, reciprocity is the norm for states with respect to towing: http://towingworld.com/towinglaws.cfm Towing with a dolly in NJ would be one of those times where printed information would be a preventative measure.
I do not want to start a gun ownership debate, so please don't. I mention this only because violations of those state laws is a bit more serious than a traffic ticket. I printed and carry the information about State Reciprocity for a CCP that can be found on this website. http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/texas.pdf
NWescapee said
11:15 PM Mar 13, 2013
Terry - why do you say "stay out of California"?? Really?
I know the speed limit issue when towing is a hassle but between the Sierras, the coast, the Redwoods, the dessert, xxxxxxx California has so much to offer and so many areas to explore outside of the cities.
Racerguy said
11:39 PM Mar 13, 2013
NWescapee wrote:
Terry - why do you say "stay out of California"?? Really?
I know the speed limit issue when towing is a hassle but between the Sierras, the coast, the Redwoods, the dessert, xxxxxxx California has so much to offer and so many areas to explore outside of the cities.
I kinda wondered the same thing.....especially since we were talking about Arizona
Terry and Jo said
12:58 AM Mar 14, 2013
I was referring to California because they seem to have more restrictions on RV's than the other states. For that matter, what with their environmental rules, they are a lot more restrictive of regular vehicles as well.
As far as referring to California when the "original" topic was Arizona, the forum "conversation" seemed to get more generic as to wondering how one was to be able to know all the laws of all the states as one crossed them.
Terry
MarkS said
04:08 AM Mar 14, 2013
I live in California just a few miles from Sequoia National Park. I've lived in Florida, Colorado, Arizona, and Massachusetts. I've driven in most of the rest. I don't notice much of a difference in restriction from state to state. Owning a trucking company in California is a horse of a different color, restrictions and requirements galore. RVs are exempt from most carb requirements in California. If you are here visiting with a tow vehicle they don't levy all those requirements on you. When towing in California I set my cruise on 62 and have never been bothered. California has a lot to offer. In fact every state does. I'll never avoid a state based on lore.
charles said
11:51 PM Mar 17, 2013
Bigboomer, Thanks for the tip, I have passed it on to a freind who has a tow vehicle similar to yours and registered in Montana. CCC
For those that maybe considering driving thru Arizona, please make sure you avoid Goodyear, AZ and here is why.
It seems that their LEO's are a bit over zealous in writing tickets to visitors. One of our friends from the Montana's Owner Club forum was driving thru their town when he was pulled over for no other reason than having only one license plate on the front of his truck pulling his 5'er. The catch is that his home state of Missouri does not issue license plates for the rear of trucks over a certain weight and stipulates they are to be on the front of the truck. The Goodyear officer said that did not matter and he was in violation of Arizona law so he wrote him up for $165. This friend called the Arizona Highway Patrol who noted that the Goodyear officer was wrong and that if he took it too court he would have the ticket reversed.
He wrote the Chief of Police in Goodyear and got no where. Since it looks like the folks of Goodyear do not enjoy visitors to their town and do not need the business revenue as they are generating it thru issuing of tickets, we are not going to spend our hard earned money in Goodyear, ever.
If you wish to get the recent scoop on the issue you can go to http://montanaadministrator.forumco.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=52988
-- Edited by bigboomer on Wednesday 13th of March 2013 04:17:42 AM
Boomer can you clear something up for me?......You said his home state doesn't issue plates for trucks over a certain weight but then says they stipulate it be on the front.If it isn't issued how can it be stipulated to be on the front? Maybe I'm missing something? Also you can't read anything on the link unless you belong to the forum.
-- Edited by Racerguy on Tuesday 12th of March 2013 02:29:27 PM
Yep, that is exactly what the AHP told our friend. The Missouri SP also told him to fight it. With something like this it usually comes down to the old "the are passing thru so they will not contest and just mail the fine in" figuring that whoever they issue one to from out of state that they will not come back for court.
-- Edited by bigboomer on Tuesday 12th of March 2013 02:51:37 PM
Racerguy,
Sorry, hopefully this clears it up. Our fellow RV'er is from Missouri and trucks over 18,000#'s are only issued one license plate and the Missouri law states it must be located on the front of the truck (figuring that most of these trucks will be towing something and the rear plate would not be readable).
Sorry as well on the link, forgot you need to be registered to see the conversations.
Les
If I were him I would at least make sure the State Attorney General of Arizona is aware of what is going on.As an aside I'm glad I read this since I'm going to Goodyear tomorrow to look at a classic car for sale.I'll be on my best behavior
.
in other words, his home state....
Knowing the specific laws of each state is impossible but beware there is an old saying a Judge said to me once....Young Man... ignorance of the law is NOT an excuse.
Ahem.....
To start with, stay out of California. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about the issue so much since most police officers will notice the out-of-state tag and do nothing about it. If you get an official, officer or judge, that wants to do otherwise, it won't make a difference. The Goodyear LEO's (Law Enforcement Officers) are ignoring what they can to get more money.
Watch driving across Kansas. The towns there like to drop speed limits quickly when going into towns. You may only get one sign stating something like "45 MPH Ahead" just about 1/8 of a mile from the dropped limit.
So, the big watchword is to not do anything to get their attention and allow them the option of stopping you.
Terry
In CA I drove my car around for a whole year with expired tags. Nobody said anything until I went to renew for 2011. Those fools at DMV wanted to charge me for two years worth of tags. Well I called them on that right now! The gentlemen showed me that the registration I had was a year out of date. I told him, "That damned old fool forgot to renew the tags." He asked me who that would have been and I looked down at my feet and sheepishly said, "Me". We laughed, I paid, and everything was fine.
Cheryl,for the most part stories like this are the exception rather than the rule.We covered the Country coast to coast twice without one traffic stop.I wouldn't worry a lot about it.
LEOs can't be expected to know all the details of another state's transportation code. Most that enforce traffic laws will only have access to a code manual for their state (that's so that they can put the correct infraction info on your ticket). And, I don't expect them to take my word for it. So I believe in an ounce of prevention. It doesn't take much effort to Google search situations one may find themselves in with respect to motor vehicle laws while traveling in different states. For those odd situations, like the plate on the front of the truck instead of the back, it can be printed and carried in one's vehicle or RV. Except for those Goodyear situations involving the uneducated and less than professional LEO, I suspect that you will be doing yourself and the officer a favor by having that printed information handy.
As can be seen in the last block of the chart on this site, reciprocity is the norm for states with respect to towing: http://towingworld.com/towinglaws.cfm Towing with a dolly in NJ would be one of those times where printed information would be a preventative measure.
I do not want to start a gun ownership debate, so please don't. I mention this only because violations of those state laws is a bit more serious than a traffic ticket. I printed and carry the information about State Reciprocity for a CCP that can be found on this website. http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/texas.pdf
I know the speed limit issue when towing is a hassle but between the Sierras, the coast, the Redwoods, the dessert, xxxxxxx California has so much to offer and so many areas to explore outside of the cities.
I kinda wondered the same thing.....especially since we were talking about Arizona
I was referring to California because they seem to have more restrictions on RV's than the other states. For that matter, what with their environmental rules, they are a lot more restrictive of regular vehicles as well.
As far as referring to California when the "original" topic was Arizona, the forum "conversation" seemed to get more generic as to wondering how one was to be able to know all the laws of all the states as one crossed them.
Terry
Thanks for the tip, I have passed it on to a freind who has a tow vehicle similar to yours and registered in Montana.
CCC