I think the money typically goes to the city, which controls both the speed signs and (at least somewhat) where cops are stationed. So its the typical US thing

I think the money typically goes to the city, which controls both the speed signs and (at least somewhat) where cops are stationed. So its the typical US thing where there's technically no corruption but, huh, that is a bit of a conflict of interest, isn't it? I've been in the car for 3 tickets, and I'll include one more I recently heard about from a family member. In one case, the driver took a turn on red at 2am when the streets were completely empty. In another, there was a very large and steep hill, and the driver didn't break sufficiently to not go over the speed limit. (The road was straight and the visibility was perfect.) In another, the speed limit quickly changed from 35mph to 15mph for no apparent reason. In all these cases, these drivers weren't putting anyone in danger. I don't think the cops were waiting in these spots by coincidence; I think they were trying to make money for the city. In the fourth case, the driver sped on a windy street, and totally deserved the ticket.