Jacksonville, North Carolina Speed Traps

The City cops with not much to do on Sunday mornings like to set-up in a parking lot on Henderson Drive and monitor vehicles on Sunday mornings. Most of the vehicles on the road at this time are people on their way to church. It is more convenient for the cops to pull people over when the traffic is not so heavy, but I believe they are filling their quotas on Sunday mornings rather than ticket the more common violators on weekdays. If it’s safety they are trying to promote, they should be ticketing violators on weekdays rather than slaughtering the lambs on Sunday mornings!

The cops around this area go crazy at night. There are people being pulled over left and right. This also happens in the morning and around rush hour, but it’s worse at night, around 10pm. There are folks with cops doubled up on them, a police SUV hanging out, and more single cops pulling people over like it’s going out of style. This area is infested with cops. It’s a speed trap because at this point, Gum Branch tends to open up, so either people are speeding out of it or into it. The posted limit is 45, but it’s not uncommon to see someone doing 70.

I honestly believe that this is a good thing. It’s a residential area and 45 is absolutely appropriate for this zone. There’s a church and school, people pulling out of apartment complexes, subdivisions, businesses, and gas stations. There’s no reason to be doing 70+ on this road. It’s also very dangerous at night, especially when raining, because of the way the road turns and the lack of street lights. Because of these dangers, it’s loaded with cops who won’t hesitate to pull you over. Watch your speed!

While those of us who travel Highway 17 know that there are cops all over the place, this one was different. We went through the back gate on Snead’s Ferry, and headed north on 17. While it’s posted 55, the average speed people drive is 65-80+, and we were doing 75. A cop driving in -opposing traffic- had hit us with the radar, whipped a U-turn, and pulled us over. I’ve never seen anything like it.

Units will park behind overpass ramps facing trafic at an angle radaring all three lanes of traffic at once. They use K band and Ka band.

The new bypass for Hwy 17 has recently opened. It is signed for 55 MPH and is a four lane limited access road. While the speed limit is not terribly unrealistic (Why not 60 or 65 for a limited access road?) Jacksonville Police Department is rabidly aggressive enforcing the entire route within the city limits. During hours of darkness, Eastbound, Marked Vehicles can be seen (If you are looking) on shoulders and the construction portion of the bypass at the current end (Hwy 24 near Bell Fork Road). Westbound, Marked Vehicles can be seen (Again, if you are looking) In the construction area facing opposite direction — You REALLY must look to see him otherwise you wont till its too late. Also found on the shoulders as well. Speed Limit Signs are VERY Well posted, and JPD will not harass you for doing 5-7 over, however it is very easy to do upwards of 75 on this road. One recent night yielded five marked vehicles, all with someone pulled over, all received citations (I was monitoring). It is not a harassment area, it is a Zero Tolerance educational (New Road, obey the rules) type of setup. Maintain the speed limit and follow all traffic laws (i.e. Signaling, Yielding to Emergency Vehicles) and you will have no problem on this road.