Traffic violations followed the invention of the automobile: the first traffic ticket in the United States was allegedly given to a New York City cab driver on May 20, 1899, for going at the breakneck speed of 12 miles per hour. Since that time, countless citations have been issued for traffic violations across the country, and states have reaped untold billions of dollars of revenue from violators.
Traffic violations are generally divided into major and minor types of violations. The most minor type are parking violations, which are not counted against a driving record, though a person can be arrested for unpaid violations.
The most common type of traffic violation is a speed limit violation. Speed limits are defined by state.