Nanny State Down-Under

[Curly]

Down here in Oz, Victoria continues its steady decline into Nanny State suffocation with yet more petty regulations to control our lives and derive income support to the voracious bureaucratic parasite we call Government.
Apparently, we can now be fined about $200 for being more than 3 metres away from our cars without first making them secure by winding up the windows and locking the doors.
What a load of nonsense – I believe that I’m able to determine the risk of felonious actions such as leaving a window down and take responsibility for that action.
To make these regulations even more ridiculous, there’s no mention anywhere of sports cars or convertibles (see below) – If you park your Spider down the street, you must wind up the windows and lock the doors; but you can still leave the soft-top folded on the rear scuttle.

Victorian Road Safety Road Rules 2009
213. Making a motor vehicle secure
(5) If the driver will be over 3 metres from the closest part of the vehicle and there is no-one left in the vehicle, the driver must :
(a) if the windows of the vehicle can be secured, secure the windows immediately before leaving the vehicle; and
(b) if the doors of the vehicle can be locked, lock the doors immediately after leaving the vehicle.

[Mathew26]

Hehehe put one over on the cops then.... You can push a Fiat 124 window down w/o using the crank. So if you get a ticket just show the cop that when the window is up you can simply push them down thus negating the part about securing the window That should show them!

[engineerted]

Curly, I wish you would not post this type of information over here, I am afraid that big brother(the goverment) will catch wind of this and think WOW what a good idea!

Who comes up with this shit! I can see how this would be ok if you parked your car with in 1 mile of a prison.

I never lock the spider, I would rather them open the door then cut thru the top. I do have a hidden fuel pump cut off switch, so they will only get a few hundered feet down the road if that.

Ted

[sptcoupe]

It always amazes me to see the solutions that governments will come up with, so let's have some fun here and come up with some of those obscure laws related to cars/traffic. Here's a couple to start us on the way.

In California, it is unlawful for a woman to drive "...in a housecoat or other clothing meant for wear inside the home". Guess thery haven't looked around lately and seen that women today wear their underwear as outerwear!

And another one . In Hilton Head, SC, it si illegal to "...leave trash in your auto if it attracts rats" Guess its ok if no rats show up. Or do they mean if the car attracts the rats???? Hmmmm.

Finally, in Oregon, You may be ticketed if "...you leave your car door open longer than is deemed necessary" By whom, and under what circumstances??

Lets see some more examples of our government(s) at work!

[narfire]

In California, it is unlawful for a woman to drive "...in a housecoat or other clothing meant for wear inside the home

Hmm.... guess some did'nt read the law before going to Wal-Mart

[perthling]

Curly, I thought we had it bad over here in the West, but that has to be some of the most ridiculous legislation I've ever seen. Mind you, I'm waiting for the argument with the police over the new ruling on child seats, namely:
"Any child under 4 years of age must be secured in a harness seat in the rear of the vehicle." Blah blah, fines will apply if in the front etc.

I think I'll stick to driving with the kid seat in the front passenger seat, because if I put the seat in the rear, I can't put the passenger seat back, and more importantly, I don't have anywhere to secure the anchor strap! At least in the front seat I can (and do) use the rear seatbelt point as an anchor point for a kid seat.

[mdrburchette]

Here's a couple from my home State:

You must stop and call City Hall before entering town in an automobile. This is so the townspeople will
have time to go out and hold their horses until you get through town. (Maybe a bit outdated?)

It is illegal to drive cars through city cemeteries for pleasure. (What am I going to do on Friday nights now?)

Elephants may not be used to plow cotton fields. (Someone had to do this at one time, right?)

It's against the law to sing off key. (Boy, I'm in trouble!)

[sptcoupe]

Denise - from what I hear, that first one about calling City Hall may not be too outdated in your part of country - and for sure, not in some towns here in Texas!

[mdrburchette]

You're right, Jeff. No wonder I get funny looks while driving through Walnut Cove.

[Curly]

I believe I made an error in my original posting on this matter. Sorry if it misled you into believing that leaving a car unlocked is treated as a trivial matter . In fact the fines can be as high as $380 which is more than you're likely to be hit for a speeding offence .

[mdrburchette]

Curly, none of us consider government's big brother attitude, bullying and theft trivial....but if we don't make a joke of it, we'll all be depressed.
I may be wrong, but years ago, while I was visiting my grandmother in Pennsylvania, she stressed for me to lock the doors of the car in a grocery store parking lot and told me I could be ticketed if it was found unlocked. This was and still is hard for me to practice since I don't even lock the doors of my house.

[baltobernie]

Virginia (USA) enacts new traffic laws July 1, 2010.

Driving as little as 15 MPH over the limit on an interstate highway now brings six license demerit points, a fine of up to $2500, up to one year in jail, and a new mandatory $1050 tax. The law also imposes an additional annual fee of up to $100 if a prior conviction leaves the motorist with a balance of eight demerit points, plus $75 for each additional point (up to $700 a year). The conviction in this example remains on the record for five years.

Other six-point convictions include "failing to give a proper signal," "passing a school bus" or "driving with an obstructed view." The same $1050 assessment applies, but the conviction remains on the record for eleven years.

The $1050 is labeled a "tax", so that traffic court judges cannot reduce or waive it. 70 mph on many stretches of Interstates in Northern Virginia is probably the 80th percentile of vehicles, so this has the potential to be a real money-maker. BTW, radar detectors are illegal in VA. Don't know what the penalty for that is, maybe amputation?