Traffic School
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Traffic School?
Nov 2010
Looking for recommendations for (or against) traffic schools
for Alameda County traffic violation. I have no clue what
to look for. Any advice?
Thanks!
First Time Violator
Do online traffic school - you can get through it much
faster than sitting in a class, and from the comfort of
home. I don't remember which one we used, but it was from
the list on the Alameda County courts website. Not Wasting
Time
You can do traffic school really easily on line. You should
get info in the mail from Alameda Cty Court w/ all the info
you need. When you go to the traffic school area there
shoujld be gajillions to choose from. Comedy, video, boring,
etc....I assume you can still attend a class, but it's so
much easier and quicker on line. You can see samples of
some of them. I am doing traffic school now (2 tix in 20
years? Not bad). I'm doing 'All Video Traffic School'. It
has video and narration as well as text. It's still pretty
boring, but I do way better hearing and watching then
reading. The school has to be approved by your county
traffic court, which is why you should wait till you get the
info from the court. You take quiz's as it moves along..then
a final exam (easy) at the end. It is automatically sent to
the court when you are done and pass. good luck. Got
caught!!
Definitely take the online course! So much quicker and less
painful. I think it took me about an hour to complete it
online, and the classes often take an entire Saturday.
Melissa
Try one of the online schools. Sorry I don't remember which
one I used. but it was cheap, easy. I think I paid ONLY
after I completed the course successfully been there
Need Good Web Traffic School
April 2009
Probably the slowest driver in my neighborhood (I creep down my 25mph
street at 19 mph), I got nabbed by a Piedmont traffic cop for going 42
in a 35mph 4-lane road sigh.
It's been a LONG time since I had to do traffic school and I'd love to
do one online this time around. The last BPN recommendations for this
topic were from 3.5 years ago...has any one done a Web traffic school
in the last year or so that can recommend a site? I've heard there are
some pretty painful ones, user experience wise.
Please advise, thanks in advance...
I used idrivesafely.com just recently and two years ago. They were a
little more expensive than other sites, but they are very reliable
and easy to get through the lessons.
Anon
Piedmont cops are the Maytag repairmen of criminal justice. They have
nothing much to do, so they have to drum up business! They are
notorious for their liberal use of speed traps. I was driving on
Grand & happened to look to my left and catch the eyes of a
motorcycle cop hiding behind a bush. I looked at my speed and was
going between 25-27 mph. Yes! Safe! You can imagine my surprise when
the cop pulled out & drove behind me for a few blocks before putting
on his lights. He had pulled me over to give me a fix-it ticket - for
excessive window tint! (I'd driven this car for 5 years all over the
place with no problem.) I have a feeling this may have been the same
cop who pulled me over for - I kid you not - ''Your eyes got real big
when you saw me.'' Of course I didn't get a ticket then because
apparently this is still legal, even in Piedmont.
But I did get nabbed in the past year in Albany when I sped up for
about 10 seconds to get around a large truck blocking my view of the
street signs. First ticket in 22 years. I got a long list of accepted
online courses (& offline but why anyone with a computer would choose
a classroom is beyond me). I read reviews online (Yelp, etc.) &
checked out different ones & chose ''Too Lazy for Traffic School''.
It was reasonably priced, pretty well written & presented. Not too
annoying. Not perfect but I found it actually informative,
educational and it probably improved my driving. You take a test
after each section. To speed getting the answers, a trick is to open
the site on 2 different screens & you can go back & forth using the
''find'' function on key words to help you get to the correct answer
quickly, if you need that.
Piedmont-savvy driver
March 2008
I've received my ticket for doing 60 in a 45 zone and want to attend
online traffic school. The BPN archives have recommendations from
2005. Has any one on the list taken an online course recently and
have a recommendation on the school they loved or the one they would
not send their wost enemy to?
Many thanks--
I'll never speed again
I just took a course with idrivesafely.com and I must say it was an easy and
pleasant experience. I also used their online tech support person once and the
woman was very helpful (which I did not expect). It was pretty cheap (I think
25 bucks) and much more painless than I expected. I'd definitely recommend it.
And it took way, way less time than the 8 hours it would take in person.
Susan
I finally got my first ticket at age 48 and used Traffic101.com for on-line
traffic school. I thought it was very good as well as user friendly. Bear in
mind that if you want the results sent to the court electronically, check the
web-site for the county in which you got the ticket to see if they are set up
for this. I got my ticket in Colusa County, which didn't at the time; that
meant I needed extra time for mailing the results. I am a proscratinater and
almost missed the deadline!
Sarah
Online Traffic School?
Aug 2006
Website postings are a couple of years old, and not much info.
Has anyone taken online traffic school recently? How much was
it, and did they tack on extra fees for mailing certificates?
Were they reliable? I'm a little nervous about providing DL and
CC number to some miscellaneous site. I'm particularly
interested if you remember the name or URL of the online school,
the cost, your satisfaction (was it pretty straightforward,
quick, got through it quickly? didn't feel like you'd lose your
mind? Was it humorous w/o wasting your time?) Thank you so much
Janet
I recently had the misfortune of getting a speeding ticket and
had to attend traffic school. As a mom of two little ones, I
decided to give online traffic school a try so that I could
study from home. I completed a course on
trafficschoolonline.com (completely random choice from the list
of approved online traffic schools) and I found it to be very
reasonable for many reasons. First, it cost $24.95 and they e-
mailed a certificate directly to the court. Second, the
material was appropriately remedial but also informative (I
admittedly was very bitter about getting a speeding ticket at
the outset because I always thought of myself as a responsible
driver, but after completing the course, I actually learned new
things and I changed my outlook on driving safety). Third, it
took me less than 3 hours to complete the course and I passed
the final test, which was a 40 question multiple choice exam,
with a score of 92% (you need an 80% to pass). There are 5
sections before you take the final exam, and you have to pass a
quiz (10 question multiple choice) before going on to each new
section.
With regard to your concerns about online security, I didn't
feel that it was unsafe at all, but then again, I do a lot of
online transactions, including banking. Also, you wanted to
know whether the course was humorous. No, it wasn't, but I
wasn't looking for laughs, just something efficient and
reasonably intelligent. Hope the info helps, and good
luck!
Beth
Pay the extra amount for the written material, rather than doing the exam
on line. I was able to go right to the test and finished the whole thing in
about an hour
Deborah
I used ''I Drive Safely.com'' and it was great. Easy to use. You go at
your own pace. My
husband used it too and was happy. After you do the online class, you
have to go
somewhere to be tested. I chose a place that was convenient to me and it
took less
than 30 minutes.
Safer driver
I just completed citationstation.com. I looked at all the online
classes that were listed in the workbook that was sent to me,
and the prices varied from a low of 14.95 to a high of around
$30. Most online courses were about $20, even the ones claiming
to guarantee they were the cheapest. citationstation.com was
14.95 (with a discount code they give you on the site),
straightforward, clean, easy. Some of the sites have elaborate
videos or were kind of messy looking, but I'm sure any number of
them would have been fine. I actually read all the material, but
was pretty quick about clicking through the quizzes, so I
finished the course in about 3 or 3.5 hrs (not including the
time I spent surfing the other sites!). I finished Friday nite,
and by Monday morning I had an email saying they'd sent my
certificate, and it was in my mailbox Wednesday. Regular mail.
most places also have options of express delivery. I had one
question about the site, and was able to call the 800 number and
get it answered right away. Like most or all of the sites, you
can get out and log back in again, but I did it all in one
sitting since I figured it would be quicker that way, and I'd
remember everything for the final
Oct 2005
after going for about 10 years w/o a moving violation, I picked
up two, and plan to do traffic school on one of them to save my
driving record. any recommendations? -- preferably for an on-
line outfit? (the last time I did this, there was no on-line
option, and I went to ''Lettuce Amuse You''. they didn't. but
it was still better than the real old-school ones, that did
their best to resemble marine boot camp). thanks.
-- desperate outlaw seeking redemption
http://www.safety-usa.com
Easy, fast, cheap.
-Recent ''grad'' :-)
I was in a similiar situation about a year ago. The ability to
do traffic school on line is a god-send. Rather than sitting
for 8 hours on a Saturday, you can click through it on line in
about 3 hours. They're all about the same.
Dana
i also just 'earned' two moving violations in a very short
period after going 15+ years without one. i received a list of
approved traffic schools from the court. i visited a few before
settling on gotaticket.com. they all seem pretty similar,
some have some sort of 'distraction' like being in the form of
a comic strip. in my opinion whatever you decide is MUCH
better than a day in traffic school. this only took me a couple
of hours at most and didn't have to be done in one sitting.
and i actually learned a few things!
safer
I used an online traffic school - Ticket Toasters. Very
convenient and cheap - I remember $15. You authorize your
identity online through some questions they ask. IMO an online
school/test is the way to go.
Jessica
My husband did one on-line called ''simple, fast, fun'' traffic
school. Although it's time consuming with the reading and taking
notes, it was nice to be able to do it in the evenings and you
can stop and come back to it when you have spare time. Depending
on the county where you got the citation some counties require
you to go to either a ''testing'' site to take the test or get the
test you send in notarized. Good Luck.
mchenry9
The one I used is http://www.gototrafficschool.com - I haven't
done the final test yet but it's been okay so far. There's a lot
of material on the web site, most of it pretty basic, and you
have to read it all, but it sure beats sitting in class for 8 hours.
Wayne
when I got a moving violation in 2000, I was in Santa Cruz
county. They sent me a list of different traffic school options
and companies. I could choose between old-fashioned school, a
CD-ROM or a book. I chose the book as I could flip through it
quickly and answer questions as I go. The CD-ROM would force me
to wait as I went through all the lessons and through each page
as the CD wanted me to. The book was great. I think it only
took a couple of hours and I did learn a thing or two and
although the book was a little cheesy, it was OK. I got a good
recipe for cantalope aqua fresca out of it.
Anon
March 2004
I just got a traffic ticket and have decided not to contest it.
My last ticket was 15 years ago when I was single and childless,
so going to traffic school for two nights (at the Piedmont Adult
School) was pretty painless. Now, however, I have three kids
under ten, so am interested in completing traffic school on-line.
I'd appreciate hearing experiences pro and con.
Although cost is a concern, I am more interested in the
convenience of completing the class on-line. How easy was it to
do the test at the end? At some sites, it looks like you either
have to get a webcam or go somewhere to complete the test. Also,
how reliable was the traffic school in sending your certificate
to the court?
I've checked the archives and found some useful information, but
these posts are two years old now; I expect there are many more
people who have used on-line traffic schools since then, so I
would love to hear about recent experiences!
Recommendations for a specific website are also most welcome.
Thanks in advance.
anon
I would highly recommend on-line traffic school. It was so
convenient and really didn't take the full 8 hours to prepare for
the test. I used IDRIVESAFELY.COM and not only was it easy on my
time it was somewhat humorous to study and you could break it up
into as many sessions as you wanted (so you could do a chapter at
a time) You could also do it at anytime, like midnight, if that's
when you found yourself free. It cost $25. I got the certificate
in 2 days of taking the test, and they file it with the court.
They ONLY downside is that you do have to go somewhere to take
the test, because it has to be notarized (and of course, they
don't want you to cheat) but you can choose the location. And the
test is easy. I say go for it.
I DRIVE SAFELY NOW
I would absolutely recommend doing online traffic school. I was
able to complete the course and test from my office at home in
about an hour. If you miss the questions on the first time
around, the website I used (which I don't remember the name of)
would just ask the same question over again until you got it
right.
Chris
I did online traffic school last spring and LOVED it. Well, not
loved it intrinsically, of course, but compared to having to go
sit in a classroom for a whole day it was wonderful. Fast,
easy, painless; I took care of the whole thing in a couple hours
one night after my toddler went to bed. I read very quickly, so
I probably managed to finish faster than average, but there was
no webcam requirement or anything like that; I just had to read
a long article about driving laws and rules, answering a
multiple-choice quiz at the end of each section. It was
possible to ''save your place'' (using a login password) so that
you could finish one section and then come back to the next
hours or even days later, as long as you finished the whole
thing within a certain time period (two weeks? 30 days?
something like that). There may have been a longer final test
at the end, but it was all done on the web, on my own time. I
think it was even cheaper than going to a traditional class
(which makes sense, since the company doesn't have to pay
instructors to run them).
Unfortunately, I do not remember the specific ''school'' I used.
As best I can recall, I chose pretty much at random from the
list the court sent me with my citation information.
Anonymous Lead-Foot
I took an online traffic school course about a year ago, from
www.trafficinteractive.com. I don't have much to compare it
to, since I've never had to take traffic school before, but I
thought it was pretty convenient, and I'm pretty sure I
finished it in a smaller amount of time (during lunch at work,
and, I think, one evening at home, for a total of ~3 hours?).
There were a few animations, which ran slower on my home dial-
up, but it was bearable. It will intermitantly ask you
questions to determine you are the person who's supposed to be
taking the course. The cost then was $18.95, which probably
did not include the cost of the certificate. I saved their
online documentation and email as my proof of completion, and
never heard back from the traffic court (Berkeley) of any
problems. Seems like a good way to do it!
Jim
Oh, the joys of traffic fines -- I've had more than my share. I
did do the on-line option with my ticket and found it to be
quite easy. You can do it at your own pace. The website will
save what you have done so far, so you can stop and go as
necessary. I don't remember it taking me much more than a few
hours total, including ''study'' and testing time. I believe you
even had the option of re-doing it if you didn't like the
results. It was pretty user-friendly and hassle-free. There
didn't seem to be any problems sending the information to
the ''powers that be.'' I think I forgot to follow-up, and I know
they got the information.
Unfortunately, it was a couple of years ago, so I don't remember
the exact site. I can tell you, however, that when you choose
the traffic school option, they send you a whole brochure with a
pretty extensive list of online options. I just checked a few of
them out and figured out which one worked best for me. If I
remember right, I chose one that looked like it was specifically
for Alameda County, if that helps.
Good luck! And -- some unsolicited advice from a seasoned pro --
don't buy a brightly colored car, because you'll always be the
one to get pulled over, even when going the same speed as
everyone else!
Katie
I got a speeding ticket last November and was concerned
about the validity of an online traffic school. Since no one I
knew had ever taken traffic school, I decided to take a
chance by signing on.
I wouldn't do it any other way.
PROS: I did it on my own time in my home. It was so
convenient and easy and I had zero problems. You read the
lessons which are broken up into chapters and sections.
You must take a quiz and pass at the end of each section in
order to continue on. This made it easy to stop at any point
in the test, in case you get interrupted. They give you 3
months to complete and you can save your answers at any
point in the test. I passed just fine and the school took care
of sending the certificate to the courts.
CONS: I did it on my own time in my home. Basically, it took
me a few weeks to finish the test b/c it's easy to get
distracted if you're on your own schedule. Also, it gets a little
tiring reading for hours on end on the computer screen but
the site is clean, clear and easy to read.
The entire test took a lot longer than I expected because I
wasn't very diligent, but it was worth it. I found the following
site from the list of traffic schools they sent to me and picked
the one that looked most professional. It was a great choice.
http://www.fasteasyonlinetrafficschool.com/
Good luck!
lhc
I thought the online version of traffic school was great. You can
do it at your own pace and don't have to sit through a class,
which in my experience is pretty boring. It was very easy to
complete the test and you don't need anything more than your web
browser. Typically, they have you read through materials, and
there's a practice test at the end of each topic. The course I
took had virtually identical questions on the practice tests and
actual test, and there were some non-traffic-related questions
you could only answer if you actually read the materials. That's
what they're really trying to ensure, as it's more important to
the learning than the test itself. I don't think it cost much
more than the regular course, and I thought it was worth it.
Because the schools are ''certified'' by each county court, they're
pretty reliable about sending the certificate, though I wouldn't
wait until the end. Alameda County also offered an extension of
the deadline when I called and said it was in the mail, basically
accepting the postmark, but you can also ask the school to send
it expedited and with a confirmation to you, if you want.
I did this two years ago, so I've forgotten the name of the one I
used, but you can do a google to find them and compare prices and
features. Some give you a free repeat of the course. The court
may also have a list of those schools they accept.
Good luck.
Lori
YES! A few months ago I did www.HomeTrafficSchool.com and it
was straightforward, and I could do it all sitting on my couch
with my laptop. Each little section had a quiz at the end, and
then the final exam is done all on-line. No special equipment
needed at all. And you could stop after any of the sections, and
then log in again some other time to keep going. I did it over
several evenings. Beats the heck out of taking up a saturday and
being bored with a bunch of random people for 8 hours!
Mike
I did the Easy On-line Traffic school-it was great-I could do
some of it, then come back to it another day. Much less painful
than sitting in 8 hours of traffic school.
anon
YES! I can't help too much because I don't remember the name
of the traffic school I used, but I will tell you it was the
most painless thing ever. I did it in one evening, but you
could do it over several if you wish. The test at the end was
absurdly easy, especially considering that you could simply
open a new browser window to take the test and therefore have
your original browser window open and available to reference
back for correct answers. I, too, was nervous about them
sending the certificate to the city -- I never got any
confirmation from either the traffic school or the city that it
was sent or received -- but it's been over a year so I have to
assume it was all taken care of. Overall, it was an extremely
positive experience.
Sarah
I recommend http://www.idrivesafely.com/. I used them about 6
months ago and it worked great. I logged on whenever I had some
spare time and it didn't take too long. They sent in the
certificate for me. The site has great usability. I think it
cost about $25. I was also able to pay the fine online at the
Alameda County's website. I'll never waste another Saturday in
traffic school again!
anon
March 2002
Hi,
I recently got a speeding ticket...my very first.
I was wondering if anyone has any tips for which traffic school is the
most tolerable. I would suppose that one of the comedy ones would be a
little better...but don't know which one to use.
Any tips?
Thanks,
The traffic school at Piedmont Adult School is held at Piedmont High School
in Piedmont. It's safe to get to at night, parking is easy, and you are
treated with intelligence and respect. A retired highway patrol officer
teaches the class; he was both amusing and sobering at the same time. I
actually learned quite a few things about defensive driving and good road
tips in general(despite the fact that I, and everyone else there, felt we
didn't deserve to be there !). I managed to stay engaged despite being 7
months pregnant, and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be to sit for
several hours for two nights. You can find their listing in the Yellow
Pages of the phone book under traffic schools.
I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed my traffic school
class and how much I
felt I benefited from it. When I left, I thought everyone should have to go
every year. I was
truly grateful for the information I learned and for the demeanor of the
instructor, who was
an interesting retiree with a pseudo-gruff attitude and interesting stories
to tell. His
personal goal seemed to be for us to leave with interesting, important
tips, facts, and
information under our belt. He was not a comedy one, which I've heard are
pretty bad,
actually. He's at the Piedmont Adult School, and I don't remember his name,
but he has a sort
of flat top military style haircut. Don't let that dissuade you; he was a
pussycat, and funny
in his own way.
Christy
I highly recommend trying to do the course online. You
can follow up with the district you received the ticket
in and ask if they allow this. Otherwise, I attended a
good one with the Comedy Traffic School at 800 301-0060.
Their website is comedytrafficschool.net.
Karen
My husband recently had to complete traffic school. He
left it so long that he was in a real pinch, and the
folks at court suggested he complete the course online.
It was super easy to do, cost about $20, and the site
sent the court the paperwork verifying that he completed
the course---and he never left the house. At the web
site (www.trafficinteractive.com) you can check which
courts they cover.
Good luck,
Denise
You can be sure that no traffic school is going to be a
picnic. But, it is now possible to go to traffic school online at
home! The cost
is approximately the same, about $30 I believe, and you
can log on and do it in segments. Just make sure that
the school that you select (we did a search for "online
traffic schools") is an acceptable one for the county
in which you received your ticket. This info will be on
the traffic schools webpage, and you can double check
with the city or county that issued the citation.
My son got a speeding ticket last year and went to
online traffic school and it seemed much less painful
than the alternatives.
Good luck.
Nancy
I noticed a bumper sticker on a taxi recently for www.webtrafficschool.com.
I checked out the website, and you can take the written exam via your
computer over a reasonable period of time without having to go sit in some
classroom for 8 hours. They have a list of counties which accept this form
of traffic school, which includes Alameda County. While I have no personal
experience with this business, my husband says others at his workplace have
used it successfully.
Good luck,
Denise
try one of the many online ones out there, if your ticketing government body
allows them. i got a ticket in sf and they do take online traffic schools.
i read materials online, took a test in a mailboxes, ect office and was done
in three or four hours. it was 25 bucks. i wish i could remember the name
of the school i used, but imagine they're all very similiar.
Good question! I can tell you the ones I thought were
a total waste of time -- comedy traffic school and
Saturday traffic school. I've yet to find one where you
actually learn something worthwhile.
I live in Fremont, but I found one of the comedy traffic schools. The guy
who taught it was hilarious and he also played some sort of unusual
instrument for us at the end (can't tell you what exactly it was, only that
it was stringed and looked like an electronic version of a sitar). It was a
one day seminar on a Saturday. I thought I'd hate it, but it was actually
very fun. The only problem I had was the rest of the class WAS there for
obviously blatant reasons (mine was for something that is no longer ticketed
at the the spot I got mine) and I stuck close to the teacher because I was
very leery of the crowd.
Marianne
My Husband just finished one through traffic101.com. If you read quickly
you can get
through it fairly fast. He looked at a bunch of them, and this according
to him (programming snob) had the least annoying web interface.
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