A question for those of you familiar with Grapevine

Theres enough warnings on top that there is no excuse for being over speed. You have almost 2 1/2 miles of being slowed from what ever to 45 then 35. And it is 35 before you drop over the edge.

Closer don't count.

 

At 50 in the 35 you are going to be looking at a 15MPH or over ticket. They are considered "Reckless driving" and in CA that's a ton of money and a SLAM on your MVR!
*GET A LAWYER! google the town name and pick a traffic lawyer!
*Call the lawyer and talk to him/her.
*They will take your check in the mail, or send them a cashiers check FROM A BANK not one of those convience store types and put your name and address and the ticket number on it. This check might also have the total fine included in it but if the charges are dropped or changed you will get a refund but it's still going to be a lot cheaper in the long run over just paying it and getting slammed a few years later ion insurance premiums and job wise!

*ask him if you must be there in court. I have never had to on a speeding ticket if you have a lawyer. A gun charge is a tad bit different!

This ticket you must fight as I said 15 over is a driving killer! When the lawyer wins or settles for a smaller speed when it comes time to "put it on your yearly thing the company has you fill out just put down what you got as to what it was changed to! DO NOT PUT 50/35!

Now a word of advice. In CA on a marked hill DO THE SPEED LIMIT! Do NOT believe some moron who says "OH follow me or they don't mess with you"! They never seem to get the guy leading the pak and they do like the clean trucks, the truck tailgating, or the last guy in line! They love pulling you out of a pak too!
Good luck as my last ticket there cost me $480 for a 10 over! That did not include the traffic school or the cost for "permission to do traffic school!"

 

Just came across this forum... and the signs don't specify any weights, so the OP is SOL there. Sounds to me as if the revenue collector... um, I mean "Officer" listed the driver's speed as 50 AFTER the driver contested the ticket. Typical CA bull$h!t... and YES, the state is bankrupt and those clowns in Sack-o-tomatoes (Sacramento) need the f______ money. I got a "lane restriction" ticket in the southbound lanes years ago... in a miserable Swift truck, no less. I was empty, of course, pulling the grade at a good clip, when I rounded a bend and saw two heavily-loaded flatbeds "drag racing" up the grade... jumped out in that #2 lane for about 6 or 7 seconds to blow past 'em... clear weather, excellent road conditions, nobody else in sight EXCEPT the D.O.T. Bear hiding in the bushes... I actually waved to him as I blew past. He pulled out, chased me down, and gave me a ticket, which as I recall was rather expensive. But that's CA... they couldn't get me for speeding in that sh*thouse Swift truck, so they had to find another way to jack some revenue out of my wallet. Oh, well, live and learn, I guess. In the OP's case, I would do everything possible to avoid having a "15 over" on my record... either by showing up in court or writing a detailed account of the incident and explaining what kind of negative effect a "15 over" conviction can have on his driving career. Bottom line for the OP: you're SOL on the fine, so focus on knocking down the speed by stressing the wording of the ticket... "approximately 50 m.p.h." Good luck with all that...

 

OR, I-5 NB over Siskiyu Summit (Ashland) and I-84 WB over Cabbage...both have graduated speed limits based on weight for big trucks...The Cabbage route actually has a reader board the tells you the advised speed and your weight as you pass under it.

 

So many on here (even those that live in CA) have been saying the money freaks are pounding the truckers on the Vine....it has been that way since I started driving in 95...difference was back then it went from 55 to 35...I am not sure when they put the 45 section in, but both zones are well advised (on both sides of the lanes) so truckers have no excuse for not seeing the reduced speed ahead.

Once you get down off the mountain, you can run 60-62 and not really worry, as long as you aren't jamming another truck or car, or making excessive lane changes...the highway cops have a real understanding on traffic flow and the problems caused by trucks doing 55 and cars clipping along at 70+...so they allow the trucks to flow better at 60ish. and lately I have actually seen more 4 wheelers getting the "good times check" from CHP than the trucks...now if they would just start getting the motor homes pulling the boat or car behind from flying along at 75+ I would be even happier. Oh yes and the Oak Harbor Freight LTL hot rods clipping out 68 and getting away with it...very frustrating to me actually!

 

You are right...Kind'a, They have ALWAYS watched that grade hard...Californias recent financial woes have had little to no effect on it as far as I can see (But I'm not lookin' for someone to blame for me gettin' a ticket)

HOWEVER!!!!

The speed limit has always been 55/45/35 for as long as I've been behind the wheel, There has been no change.
It's 55 up the hill and across the top, As soon as you crest and start down at Frazier Park it goes to 45 and stays at 45 past the rest area and past the old brake check area where it starts warning you that the truck speed limit is going to change to 35 then there is a sign right at the top of the grade that says "TRUCK SPEED LIMIT 35 MPH" and you'd better be doing 35 when you pass that sign...Then right near the bottom it says "END TRUCKS 35 MPH" and you can haulass...Well, If you consider 55 haulin'###!

 

I was just there yesterday...And BlackW900 is absolutely correct....

I used to drive the Grapevine back in late 70's when I commuted from Surf City to Fort Ord....IIRC...the lane restrictions were there even back then....

 

Is that a reference to the thing my ol' Granpoppa would call "Horse Sense?" Seems to me, going down Cabbage, Siskiyou, the Vine, shoot, almost all of them, there's more Horse-powered Nonsense than Horse Sense. I LOVE the smell of brakes on the hills!