• Massachusetts fines drivers for speeding.speed image by Kevin Chesson from Fotolia.com
  
  Speeding is a civil violation in Massachusetts, and the penalty is a fine. In addition to the fine, a speeding ticket can increase a driver's auto insurance rate. A driver can pay a ticket without a hearing or contest a ticket in the district court for the location where he received it. The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles website allows drivers to pay tickets online. Massachusetts issued 305,419 speeding violations in 2007, according to the state's Highway Safety Plan.
  
  

Reasonable and Proper

• Massachusetts law specifies that drivers shouldn't travel at speeds greater than what is "reasonable and proper." Even if you're traveling below the posted speed limit, you can get a ticket for driving too fast for traffic, road or weather conditions. If a road has no speed limit signs, state law allows a presumption of speeding if drivers go faster than specific limits for certain types of roads.
  
  

Posted Limits

• State law allows cities and towns to set and post speed limits on local roads. Owners of parking lots and private roads can go to the city or town for permission to post speed limits. The maximum speed on any highway in Massachusetts is 65 mph.
  
  

School Buses

• Massachusetts prohibits school buses carrying children from traveling faster than 40 mph on any road other than a limited-access highway.
  
  

Fines

• The minimum fine for speeding in Massachusetts is $50, plus a $50 surcharge added to every speeding violation. If a driver was traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit, state law adds $10 to the fine for each mile per hour that exceeds 10 mph over the limit. State law specifies that $30 of the surcharge goes to a trust fund for the treatment of head injuries.
  
  If you get a ticket for going 40 mph in a 30-mph zone, for example, you face a $50 base fine and a $50 surcharge, for a total of $100. If your ticket says you were going 52 mph in a 30-mph zone, Massachusetts will add $120 to the ticket--$10 for every mile per hour over 40 mph--for a total of $220.
  
  

Construction Zones

• Massachusetts law doubles the state's ordinary speeding fines for speeding in a marked construction zone.
  
  

License Revocation

• State law provides for the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles to revoke the license of any driver with three speeding violations within 12 months. The state won't issue a new license to the driver for at least 30 days.
  
  

Inexperienced Drivers

• Massachusetts drivers with learner's permits and young drivers with junior operator's licenses lose their driving privileges for 90 days after a single speeding violation. Drivers must reapply for a learner's permit before they can get a full driver's license, if the state suspends their permit for speeding. A junior operator must pay additional fees, and complete a course and driving test before the Massachusetts registry will reinstate a license suspended for speeding.