Be careful on Nebraska highways

[MNsnwdrift]

My sons were traveling back from snowmobiling in the Wyoming mountains yesterday afternoon at 1:30pm. They were coming across Nebraska on I-80 near Lincoln. They saw a highway patrol sitting along the highway. They looked down at the spedometer and they were traveling 70 mph in a 75 mph zone, so they just kept on going. Next thing you know they are getting pulled over. The officer asks my son if he knew why he was pulled over, my son said "no" the officer said "you are not allowed to have fog lights on in Nebraska when you are within 200 feet of another vehicle". We have a 2006 Ford F-350 pickup with factory installed fog lamps inside the front bumper, the fog lamps go on when the headlights are on and are on low beam. The fine for this terrible infraction is $300. First off does the Nebraska state legislature have nothing better to do than dream these laws up ? Isn't there enough speeders and unsafe vehicles traveling along the Nebraska interstates for the troopers to pick up ? So instead they spend 30 minutes of his time to stop my sons for not shutting off their fog lights when they drove by him in the middle of the afternoon ? Let me guess, when the state troopers arent wasting their time pulling people over for excessive use of fog lamps they are going home to home checking to see if the "do not remove" tags are still on peoples mattresses.
Sorry just had to vent.

 

[SledsWest]

Wyoming is just as bad, if not worse. I had a WHP that I was following on I-80 actually hit his brakes from cruising speed and come back to pull me over and tell me I was going 81 MPH. I asked him if he knew how the laws of physics worked and if I was speeding, he must have been speeding too. Yep, I walked away with a $120 ticket, mostly because I had Utah license plates on my truck. douchebags.

 

[MT rydn]

huh?

My sons were traveling back from snowmobiling in the Wyoming mountains yesterday afternoon at 1:30pm. They were coming across Nebraska on I-80 near Lincoln. They saw a highway patrol sitting along the highway. They looked down at the spedometer and they were traveling 70 mph in a 75 mph zone, so they just kept on going. Next thing you know they are getting pulled over. The officer asks my son if he knew why he was pulled over, my son said "no" the officer said "you are not allowed to have fog lights on in Nebraska when you are within 200 feet of another vehicle". We have a 2006 Ford F-350 pickup with factory installed fog lamps inside the front bumper, the fog lamps go on when the headlights are on and are on low beam. The fine for this terrible infraction is $300. First off does the Nebraska state legislature have nothing better to do than dream these laws up ? Isn't there enough speeders and unsafe vehicles traveling along the Nebraska interstates for the troopers to pick up ? So instead they spend 30 minutes of his time to stop my sons for not shutting off their fog lights when they drove by him in the middle of the afternoon ? Let me guess, when the state troopers arent wasting their time pulling people over for excessive use of fog lamps they are going home to home checking to see if the "do not remove" tags are still on peoples mattresses.
Sorry just had to vent.

ok so am i the only one reading this and completely confused?? what is this law? what is the reason? how in the world would anyone other than someone who lives there know about this?? and a fine of $300 and not just a warning for an out of stater passing through?

 

[←snow∞motion→]

ok so am i the only one reading this and completely confused?? what is this law? what is the reason? how in the world would anyone other than someone who lives there know about this?? and a fine of $300 and not just a warning for an out of stater passing through?

Unfortunately, that is the reason, out of state revenue.

 

[robertyoke]

serve and protect!



yea right get used to it.......ARREST AND COLLECT!

 

[vdo1948]

Can someone from Nebraska verify this? I don't often haul sleds thru Nebraska but have a daughter and her family living there and have fog lights (factory) on both my truck and my wife's car. Really don't care to deal with this. On the other hand this sounds a little too red-neck even for Nebraska. I can see some hick town passing such a law to up the income, but for the whole state to do this seems incredulous.

 

[dmkhnr]

My father has always said that you would have to have an abusive personality to have a job like that which is normally the case with cops.
I think there is more to the story than just a $300 fog light violation.

 

[Mafesto]

In Nebraska, the "N" stands for Nowledge.

 

[Leardriver]

In our city, tickets are written for speeding 7 over the posted limit now.

When I was a cop, you got ridiculed by the other officers for writing a ticket for less than 12 over.

It's all about revenue collection with tight government budgets, and you just have to know that the law is looking for any excuse.

It's funny how paying a fine to them suddenly makes whatever heinous act you were committing safer.

 

[Blk88GT]

I've driven clear across Nebraska at night twice, with my fog lights on from one end of the state to the other. Never had an issue? Seems like a pretty strange law....

 

[Dam Dave]

I 80 is a major drug traffic route, cops pull over lots of out of states vehicles just to look inside, just how it is these days I guess

 

[jsledder]

I'd fight it.....

 

[snowdog484]

That and turn your fog lights off. I have the same year truck and never drive with them on for that reason. Oklahoma has that same stupid law. We also found out the hard way. To turn the fog lights on you have to physically pull out the lights knob.

 

[Coldfinger]

As stated above, I80 is a major drug route. The section between Lincoln and Omaha have produced some huge drug busts, most of which are the result of traffic infractions.


Here is some info from a recent court case in NE where they pulled someone over because of the lights and he ended up with a DUI. Here are some comments on the lights:

Court of Appeals of Nebraska.



STATE v. CARNICLE


STATE of Nebraska, appellee, v. Brad CARNICLE, appellant.


No. A-10-074.

-- December 14, 2010
SIEVERS, MOORE, and CASSEL, Judges.





[3-5] The facts are not disputed, and thus, we approach the appeal as involving only questions of law. We begin our analysis with the statute allowing vehicles to be equipped with “auxiliary driving lights” and defining such, § 60-6,225(2), which provides in pertinent part:

Any motor vehicle may be equipped with not to exceed two auxiliary driving lights mounted on the front at a height not less than twelve inches nor more than forty-two inches above the level surface on which the vehicle stands, and every such auxiliary driving light shall meet the requirements and limitations set forth in section 60-6,221․ Auxiliary driving lights shall be turned off at the same time the motor vehicle's headlights are required to be dimmed when approaching another vehicle from either the front or the rear.

The terms of the above statute require that we refer to Neb.Rev.Stat. § 60-6,221 (Reissue 2004). Section 60-6,221(1) provides that headlights shall “produce a driving light sufficient to render clearly discernible a person two hundred feet ahead, but the headlights shall not project a glaring or dazzling light to persons in front of such headlights.” Section 60-6,221(2) then provides:

Headlights shall be deemed to comply with the provisions prohibiting glaring and dazzling lights if none of the main bright portion of the headlight beam rises above a horizontal plane passing through the light centers parallel to the level road upon which the loaded vehicle stands and in no case higher than forty-two inches, seventy-five feet ahead of the vehicle.

 

[Coldfinger]

You can read the laws here:

http://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/browse-chapters.php?chapter=60

Scroll way down, like 3/4 the way, and look for sections mentioned above.
60-6, 220 221, etc

 

[yukonrider]

Why not just turn your fog lights off in the day, and furthermore, if it isn't foggy, 'fog lights' probably shouldn't be on anyhow.. Especially seeing how they are stock lights ,they are probably next to useless anyways (unless you count annoying other motorists a use)

 

[RMKrick]

Iam originally from lincoln i think that is a kickazz law! I hate those jag offs that have to drive everywheres with them on they dont do anything but blind people when its not foggy.. Wish it was a law in wisconsin!

 

[Blk88GT]

So it's only applicable in the daytime, right?

What's the issue? Why do you need fog lights on in the daytime?

 

[zblink]

Iam originally from lincoln i think that is a kickazz law! I hate those jag offs that have to drive everywheres with them on they dont do anything but blind people when its not foggy.. Wish it was a law in wisconsin!

how are fog lights blinding?? they fill the void from your bumper to just past where your low beams start. now if he had some off road lights on or something but not the stock ones

 

[summitpeaking]

In Nebraska, the "N" stands for Nowledge.

Good one.