CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) - The Virginia State Police has scaled back an aerial speed limit enforcement program due to the program's costs.
Since 2008, only 20 tickets have resulted from troopers patrolling interstates in Cessna 182 airplanes. No speeding tickets have been issued this year. Between 2000 and 2008, 5,117 tickets were issued.
State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller tells The Daily Progress that the agency has retired the three planes used for the program to field training.
Geller says an hour in the air costs about $150 for fuel and maintenance. The missions range from 4.5 to six hours. They require a trooper-pilot, a specially trained trooper to calculate a vehicle's speed and a trooper on the ground.
Geller says the state police had to reduce expenses because of decreased federal funding.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Information from: The Daily Progress, http://www.dailyprogress.com
