Criminal speeding in Maine is 30mph over the limit. You can be arrested on the spot.
I think that speed limits are bull????. If you are driving somewhere at a dangerous speed, in that you are a clear danger to other motorists or pedestrians, then you should be cited for driving to endanger. I can think of few areas where driving 15-20 miles over the speed limit is a danger to anyone unless you don't know how to drive.
Cops here won't stop you for going 10 over the limit, but people still insist on driving the limit or under. That causes traffic congestion because cars end up much closer to each other, and since cars being closer to each other increases the liklihood of an accident, it could be argued that speed limits make driving less safe.
They're also a perfect excuse to pull someone over without probable cause. If you're exceeding the posted speed by 5mph--even if it is not the habit of police to stop you--you are still very much a target.
I think what it comes down to is that it brings in revenue, and they can always plead that people would drive like maniacs if there were no limits imposed. So instead, people drive like low-watt tools because they've never learned how to decide for themselves what a safe speed is; they need a sign to do their thinking for them.
Speeding tickets are such bull crap. I'm tired of people getting speeding tickets when those who run red lights or continue to turn on red don't get a damn thing, especially when there's a lazy ass cop sitting right at the light watching them.
I got a ticket for an expired inspection sticker when I threw up my arms at a cop who let three people run a red light at noon on a Friday at a major intersection. She pulled me over and asked what the problem was. I told her what she did, she denied it (said she couldn't see the intersection), and then she started looking for things to ticket me for (upbraiding me the whole time; she even suggested that if I could do the job better, maybe I should enlist in the academy). When she found the inspection sticker, she asked me if I really thought I was in a position to criticize the legality of other people's driving. I told her that I knew that my car was in safe condition, and less of a threat than three people running a light. Angry that I wouldn't let it go, she said "Three cars DID NOT run that light." So I said, "You know that? But I thought you couldn't see the intersection."
I think that was the point where she decided to ticket me for the sticker.