Do Speeding Tickets Reduce the Likelihood of Receiving Subsequent Speeding Tickets?

The March 2007 issue of the journal Traffic Injury Prevention, just released a longitudinal study of speeding violators in Maryland exploring whether or not speeding tickets reduce the likelihood of receiving subsequent speeding tickets. Since speeding tickets are the most commonly used tool to deter speeders, the researchers wanted to know how effective speeding citations were on an individual driver's future behavior over time.

The study included 3,739,951 drivers from Maryland and they were followed for 1 year. In Maryland, there are 3 different types of penalties for speeding: 1) fines and points on insurance card, 2) probation before judgement, PBJ (results in fines but no points if no other violation is committed within a 6 to 12 month period) and 3) no legal consequences.

Overall, those drivers who received speeding citations are at an increased risk of receiving subsequent speeding citations which suggest that speeding citations have a limited effect on deterring drivers from speeding again. In comparing different penalties, PBJ is associated with a reduced rate of recidivism more than stronger penalties.The authors suggest that increasing drivers' perceptions that they are at risk of being caught may improve the effectiveness of speeding law enforcement.

To read the entire study, click here.