Because Critical Link does so much with vision systems, I’m always interested in camera applications.
On a recent European trip, I noticed that they have a lot of traffic cameras on their highways.
This is something that is coming into use in the States –often to identify those who run red lights – but which is more prevalent overseas. Anyway, while driving from Germany to Zurich Airport, which is just over the German border, I was saying to myself that it was pretty cool to see all those traffic cameras pointed at me – so cool that I tested one out.
As anyone who’s driven in Germany knows, it’s pretty easy to gun it a bit on the Autobahn, which I apparently managed to do. (All made even easier by it being 4 a.m.)
Anyway, we were in a tunnel and saw a red flash go off.
Uh-oh.
My wife, who was traveling with me, asked what it was, and I had to tell her that it meant that I’d just gotten a speeding ticket.
I haven’t heard back yet from the rental car company, but I’m pretty sure that they’ll be piling on a hefty fee to whatever the speeding fine is.
Fortunately, I was speeding in Germany rather than in Switzerland, where the speeding fines can be an order of magnitude higher. If you’re practicing extreme speeding, the Swiss will even confiscate your car. I was not, of course, extreme speeding, so the fine will likely be somewhere in the 15 to 25 Euro range.
For all my trying to get to the airport in time – one good thing about a no-officer-involved ticket is that you’re not pulled over on the side of the highway while they run your license – our plane ended up having a mechanical issue (faulty bleed valve), so we ended up with a little extra taste of Zurich. No driving involved!