Vergennes, Vermont Speed Traps

I couldn’t tell where the police came from. It was very dark and I couldn’t see any road signs. I just know it goes from 50 to 30 very quickly. I got my first speeding ticket from Vergennes and this will be the only money they ever get from me.

Cop hides in drk with lights and radar off, until you pass the sign lowering the speed from 55 to 25. This is a dark area with little lighting, a country road. He then throws the radar and flashing lights on and you are trapped.

I was given a ticket for going 44 miles and hour in a 30 mile zone. I was traveling in a caravan with a friend who was behind me who said he thought I was actually going between 35 and 40. I saw the 40 mile sign as I approached the town, but unfortunately I did not see the 30 mile one (though my friend saw it).
30 mph is lower than most of the other towns we passed through on that route, which were mostly 35. And there were a couple of very interesting follow-ups. When we got to our event, another friend told us that they had been sitting next to a woman in a restaurant in Vergennes who was complaining to her companions that she had just gotten a ticket for going 44 mph in a 30 mile zone. And then when I told another person there that I had gotten a ticket he laughed and asked "Was it for going 44 miles an hour in a 30 mile zone?" because the same thing had happened to him some months before. He said Vergennes is famous for it. So I think it is a trap.

The fine is exorbitant in my opinion, but clearly they target people from out of state because they know you won’t come back in order to go to court (The fine varies apparently from $28 to $1128, but the ‘waiver’ to avoid court is $123). A pickup truck in front of me was actually going faster than I, because it pulled away from me, (which is partly why I didn’t slow down more – I was just driving with the traffic), but it had Vermont plates. Very interesting indeed!
So watch very carefully for 30 mph signs when approaching Vergennes, so you can keep from contributing to the city budget! Or better yet, avoid Vergennes altogether. From NY you can take a ferry across from further up Lake Champlain, and spend your tourist dollars in NY instead of Vermont, which is what I’ll do if I ever go to Vermont again.

Heading North into Vergennes on State Route 22A, 50mph turns to 30mph… enforcement is either parked in the small access to the cemetary on the left or the gravel parking lot on the right. Also, less than 1/4 mile from that, there is a driveway to a deserted house. The Vergennes PD back their cars into the shadows during the evening hours and clock north and southbound. YOU CANNOT SEE THEM before they see you.
Once through Vergennes, before 22A ends at US 7, there is a small pull off on the west side of the road where the PD clocks. Once again, sneaky and not visible. Consider Vergennes VT one huge speedtrap. Do yourself a favor and do 30 or lower… There is no talking your way out of a ticket here.

Any road in Vergennes. The PD is relentless in their speed enforcement.