Recently, while passing through a park road, I received a 45-mile ticket in a 25-mile zone. Even now, thinking about that day makes me feel wronged, yet I also realize I need to be more careful in the future.

On a Saturday afternoon, I stopped by a Korean market in Vermont and was on my way home, passing through the park road. That road is busy during the day, with many people, cyclists, joggers, and parents with strollers all mixed together. The problem is that the road is wide and the view is clear, making the speed feel much slower than it actually is. There were hardly any cars, and the traffic lights were all green, so I was just driving as usual.

As I was driving, I suddenly heard a siren behind me. At first, I thought it had nothing to do with me. In LA, I hear sirens dozens of times a day. But when I looked in the side mirror, I saw a police car right behind me. My heart sank. As soon as I pulled over and rolled down the window, the officer asked, "Do you know why I stopped you?" I thought I had been wrongly stopped.

The officer said the speed limit was 25 miles, but I was driving at 45 miles. I realized I had definitely gone over 40, but I didn't know it was a 25-mile zone. It was a pedestrian protection area because it was near a park. There was a sign, but it was hard to see because it was blocked by a tree. I felt wronged, but I knew arguing wouldn't help, so I just nodded.

The officer told me not to get out of the car and started entering something on a tablet before handing me the ticket. I was stunned again when I saw the fine amount. It wasn't just a simple speeding ticket; it was for exceeding 20 miles over the limit in a 25-mile zone, which meant a hefty fine and points on my record. It was a road I drove every day, but that day was different.

When I got home and told my neighbors, they all warned me to be careful on that road. They said that park road is a trap zone. It's one of the famous ticket spots in LA. In fact, there are many people on Google Maps reviews who have also received tickets at that location.

In the end, I applied for traffic school to avoid points and paid the fine in installments with my card. Since then, every time I pass that road, I intentionally reduce my speed to 20 miles. Now, even when cars behind me honk, I don't pay them any mind. The lesson I learned is that the wider and less crowded the road in LA, the more careful you need to be with the signs. Especially near parks, school zones, and residential areas. These three places are real traps.

Now, when I share that story with my friends, they say, "I got caught there once too."

If I had known earlier, I could have saved $400....