Over 1,000 Drivers Stopped for Speeding During Recent Crackdown

(KNSI) — A statewide crackdown on speeding drivers led to police writing 18,000 tickets, including more than 1,000 in the St. Cloud area.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety, the Minnesota State Patrol, and local law enforcement worked together to stop leadfoot drivers from July 1st to the 31st.

Some of the highlights from the campaign included one person in the Foley area getting two speeding tickets from the same officer just an hour apart. Troopers also say they clocked a vehicle going 86 miles per hour. As the trooper got behind her, she increased speeds to 110 miles per hour. The 23-year-old said she thought they were trying to race her. One driver in Cambridge was pulled over for driving 140 miles per hour.

The Minnesota State Patrol District in St. Cloud issued 1,058 tickets, the fifth most in the state behind Rochester at 1,353, Golden Valley at 1,309, Oakdale at 1,141, and Duluth at 1,092.

The cost of a speeding ticket varies by county, but it will typically cost a driver more than $110 with court fees for traveling ten mph over the limit. Fines double for those speeding 20 mph over the limit, and drivers can lose their license for six months for going 100 mph or more.

State Patrol troopers have cited 52,889 drivers for speeding through August 1st, compared with 52,397 tickets written at this time last year. So far this year, troopers have cited 715 motorists for driving 100 mph or more compared with 754 last year.

___