Lakeland Traffic School Online
Lakeland Traffic Ticket and Highway Risk Information
Lakeland, Florida is found in Polk County between Orlando and Tampa. It has a population of about 102,000 residents and provides a popular place for visitors to enjoy every year. The mixture of residents and visitors make the roads more dangerous than normal.
Visitors come to the area to enjoy the lakes and the warm climate, especially during peak season.
The city is also a part of the Lakeland-Winter Haven Metro area, which has a population of about 625,000 residents. Along with the high population and visitors, the area is served by many major roads, which are known to be dangerous for driving.
After a law enforcement official issues a traffic ticket to you in Lakeland, you may not be very happy. However, consider these traffic statistics before you get too upset:
- The Lakeland area is served by multiple major highways including Interstate 4, Polk Parkway (State Road 570), State Road 33, State Road 37, State Road 540, US 92 and US 98.
- I-4 is rated as the third deadliest highway in the United States for the portion found in Florida.
- More than 180,000 vehicles use the Florida portion of I-4 every single day.
- Lakeland is found about half way between Tampa and Orlando, so it sees a higher volume of traffic with many travelers going from one city to another.
- Traffic accidents in both Lakeland and Polk County are on the rise.
If the roads were not monitored in Lakeland, these statistics would be much worse.
| Polk County Crash Stats | 2011 | 2012 | Percent Change | 3-Year Avg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Number of Motor Vehicle Crashes | 5,133 | 6,624 | +29.05% | 5,908 |
| Fatalities | 93 | 88 | -5.38% | 89 |
| Injuries | 4,474 | 4,823 | +7.80% | 4,773 |
| Alcohol Related | 419 | 400 | -4.53% | 433 |
| Alcohol Related Fatalities | 30 | 20 | -33.33% | 26 |
| Alcohol Related Injuries | 203 | 186 | -8.37% | 194 |
Traffic Ticket Stats for Polk County, Florida
Over 45,000 traffic tickets were issued by law enforcement in Polk County for 2015. Out of these tickets more than 16,000 were given to those caught speeding with another 8,211 handed out by red light cameras for those running a red light. Another 3,592 tickets were issued to careless driving, as well. Only about 4% of the tickets given to drivers were dismissed by a judge. Your chances of getting out of paying the ticket are very slim.
Don't Let your Driver's License Get Suspended in Lakeland, Florida
The State of Florida takes highway safety very seriously and they will suspend your driver's license if you receive too many traffic citations. Each traffic ticket comes with points ranging from 3 to 6, depending on the severity of the offense. If you rack up 12 points in a one-year period, you will be subject to a 30-day suspension. Those receiving 18 points in 18 months will lose their license for 90 days and those receiving 24 points in 36 months will have to do without a driver's license for an entire year.
You may think it's no big deal, but if you get caught driving on a suspended license, you may spend up to 90 days in jail and have to pay $500 in additional fines. Points for traffic tickets include:
- Speeding at less than 15 mph over the posted limit is 3 points
- Speeding at more than 15 mph over the posted limit is 4 points
- Speeding and causing an accident is 6 points
- Running a red light or stop sign is 4 points
- Curfew violations for younger drivers are 3 points
- Hit and run offenses are 6 points
- Other traffic tickets are 3 or 4 points
Racking up points isn't very hard if you become a habitual offender.
Use Traffic School to Erase Points
If you were issued a ticket in Lakeland, Florida, you can use online traffic school to keep the points off your license. This will help you avoid a license suspension and will also help keep your insurance rates from going up.
You will need to start by paying the fine for the ticket. Make sure you inform the clerk of the court that you will be attending traffic school. Then, enroll in the basic driver improvement course online and complete the course. Once you've completed the course, you will receive a certificate of completion. This needs to be turned into the clerk of the court. It's that simple to avoid points on your license from a recent traffic ticket.
Eligibility for Traffic School in Lakeland, Florida
Traffic school eligibly requires that you haven't taken the class in the past 12 months or 5 times in your lifetimes. The State of Florida allows all drivers to use the basic driver improvement course up to five times in their lifetime. However, you can only take the course once every 12 months.
Polk County Clerk of the Court
Regardless of the branch of law enforcement issuing the ticket, the Polk County Clerk of the Court takes all payments and handles any questions about traffic tickets. If you plan to enroll in traffic school, you will need to inform the clerk of the court when you pay your ticket. You can find out more about the Polk County Clerk of the Court by visiting the website.
