Traffic

One more for the list of things that peeve me about driving in the US. The other day I was pulled over by a cop in the highway, on my way to work. Though I was going over the speed limit (by a bit only), the reason I was stopped was that the tabs on my license plates had expired. Come again? What are tabs?

Tabs are little stickers in the license plates of vehicles that have a date on them. I had always thought they were simply indicators of vintage. But no, they need to be renewed, at about $100. This can be done entirely over the internet, you can use your credit card (convenient, ey?). Yes, you read right: the car is not inspected in any way, you just have to pay.

Of course, aside from paying for the tabs, I was fined $200, and the little citation calls me a “violator”. I know this isn’t as bad a word in English as it is in Spanish, but it annoys me because I think I’m the victim here. Oh well, taxes must be collected.