Have you gotten a ticket for running a red light? If you think the 'warning' time of your yellow light ran out a bit too fast, you may be right. And you might be able to make that case in court.

Apparently, when state DOTs reduce the yellow light time, that fraction of a second produces more money for the state. Imagine that. In Florida the state raked in an extra $50 million in 2012 just by reducing yellow light times by less than half a second.

How did they do it? According to WTSP-TV's Noah Pransky, the FDOT quietly changed the state's policy on yellow intervals in 2011, reducing the minimum below federal recommendations. The rule change was followed by engineers, both from FDOT and local municipalities, collaborating to shorten the length of yellow lights at key intersections, specifically those with red light cameras (RLCs).

It was coming. Some states and cities have shattered records that have stood for nearly five years and gasoline prices skyrocket in the Midwest.

Minneapolis saw another jump over night and into today to $4.39 a gallon, beating out consistently high Honolulu by a dime! There's more bad news before the light at the end of the tunnel- more hikes may hit in the day or two ahead. But relief isn't far off- prices may peak in the next week before beginning to decline. The high prices for gasoline are sure to attract replenishment from far away. Records for gas prices are listed below.

Anybody who's looked at electric vehicles and follows the news knows that one of the big obstacles that steers buyers away has been concern about the sometimes diminishing performance of the EV batteries, and, their inability to hold a charge for as long as advertised...

Smart USA has come up with a novel solution to alleviate those concerns.

According to AutoNews.com, Smart is now allowing buyers and lessees to rent the battery -- and lower the purchase price or monthly leases -- in the ForTwo Electric Drive coupe that went on sale this week.

OUCH. That's really all I can think of when I see gasoline prices in the Midwest. We've sent warnings to motorists via Facebook, alerted you via e-mail, and prices continue to rise.

Minnesota and the Twin Cities both hit all time record highs today. Pump prices have never been higher in these two areas. More bad news for motorists: several states may soon join Minnesota in breaking records last set in 2008.

At risk for possible record high gasoline prices in the next week or two: Iowa, Kansas, parts of Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota. Already shattering records in Minnesota, motorists are in lines dozens of cars deep, compounding the problems that brought the high prices: tight supply.

The National Transportation Safety Board is recommending that all states lower the blood alcohol level that constitutes drunk driving.

NBC News reports that currently, all 50 states have set a BAC level of .08, reflecting the percentage of alcohol, by volume, in the blood. If a driver is found to have a BAC level of .08 or above, he or she is subject to arrest and prosecution.

The NTSB recommends dropping that to a BAC level of .05. Will it improve driver safety and reduce alcohol consumption? They're betting it will.

If you're one of the relatively few Americans driving an electric vehicle (EV) or hybrid, your purchase of gasoline has been minimal, and therefore, the federal and state fuel taxes you pay don't come close to covering the maintenance needed to cover the cost of highway infrastructure readily available to you.

Many states are looking to increase that revenue because of the decline in federal gas taxes that was supposed to be earmarked for repairs to roads, bridges and the Interstate highway system.

EV owners have been immune from the cost but that's about to change. Washington state is assessing a $100 annual tax for residents driving certain electric vehicles (EVs), an effort to recoup some of the money lost to those who drive zero-emission vehicles.

While the typical resident pays roughly $182 per year in state gas taxes, the EV owner is still better off, and that's an imbalance that some are trying to address.

The Energy Information Administration released its weekly report on the status of petroleum inventories in the United States today.

Here are some highlights:

CRUDE INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories decreased by 0.6 million barrels to a total of 394.9 million barrels. At 394.9 million barrels, inventories are 13.2 million barrels above last year (3.5%) and are well above the upper limit of the average range.

GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories increased by 2.6 million barrels to 217.7 million barrels. At 217.7 million barrels, inventories are up 13.4 million barrels, or 6.5% more than last year. Here's how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared last week: East Coast (+1.8mb); Midwest (-0.9mb); Gulf Coast (+1.8mb); Rockies (+0.1mb); and West Coast (-0.1mb). It is important to note which regions saw increases/decreases as this information likely drives prices up (in the case of falling inventories), or down (in the case of rising inventories).

DISTILLATE (diesel, heating oil) INVENTORIES:
Distillate inventories increased by 2.3 million barrels to a total of 119.9 million barrels. At 119.9 million barrels, inventories are now 0.1% higher than a year ago. Total distillate inventories stand 0.1 million barrels higher than their year ago level.

Motorists in Chicago have long been accustomed to the largest red light camera network in the United States, but today they finally have more sticks to throw at city politicians after an audit argued the program is based more on revenue than safety.

Inspector General Joseph Ferguson, who began a four year term in 2009, blasts the program, "our audit uncovered little evidence that the overarching program strategy, guidelines, or appropriate metrics are being used to ensure the [Red Light Camera] program is being executed to the best benefit of the City or the general public."

In an open letter to the Mayor, City Council, City Clerk, City Treasurer, and residents of Chicago, the Inspector writes:

CDOT was unable to substantiate its claims that the City chose to install red-light cameras at intersections with the highest angle crash rates in order to increase safety. Neither do we know, from the information provided by CDOT, why cameras in locations with no recent angle crashes have not been relocated, nor what the City’s rationale is for the continued operation of any individual camera at any individual location.

Funding for Virginia's transportation infrastructure planning has hit a sizeable roadblock.

James A Cales, Jr., a Portsmouth Circuit Court judge in Plymouth VA, has ruled that public-private partnerhips there, as defined by the state's Public Private Transportation Act of 1995, are unconstitutional. He said the 1995 law involves an unconstitutional delegation of power to the executive branch.

And that means you can't keep the fruit from that tree too. Cale ruled against proposed tolls on the Norfolk-Portsmouth tunnels under the Elizabeth River.

If my spare tire was under-inflated I don't know that I'd hold the automaker responsible... or even consider that a problem. It's the nature of the beast. Tires need air from time to time.

Nonetheless, Nissan said it's recalling 123,308 Altimas because the spare tires may have been significantly over- or under-inflated. They said the problem was due to a production issue at its Canton, Mississippi plant that has since been corrected. No other Nissan or Infiniti models are affected because the manual assembly operation was unique to the model, Nissan said. The affected vehicles were built from March 21, 2012 through March 26, 2013.

Memorial Day stands just two weeks away, and with U.S. and Canadian gasoline prices going up, some are asking how long this may last and where prices may move to. I'll try to provide some explanation of both.

The week ahead will likely see gasoline prices advance in slightly over two-thirds of communities. These areas will likely be the Plains states as well as the West Coast. The Great Lakes will continue to see prices hold in the upper-$3/gal range. Areas of the Southern U.S. may see little change- some areas will rise, some may drop.

Twenty-five gas stations have settled price-gouging claims made against them immediately after Hurricane Sandy hit New York, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman recently announced.

The stations settled for a total of $167,850 and investigations are pending against dozens of others, Schneiderman said. He said he would sue four more companies that he accuses of participating in some of the biggest jumps in gas prices in state history.

If you do the math, that tells you the 25 companies with whom the state "settled" paid a mere $6,714 --on average-- after being caught ripping off New Yorkers, whose lives and homes were already in jeopardy.

What do you think? Is that a real penalty or a slap on the wrist that encourages them to keep clobbering their customers?

We're not kidding. Lindsay Chappell of Crain's Automotive News says Nissan's latest move is all about jockeying for better position in Internet shopping sites. To that end Nissan has cut the manufacturer's suggested retail prices on seven key models.

The price cuts range from a $580 reduction on the brand's volume leader, the Altima, which was redesigned for 2013 and was the best-selling car in the nation in March, to $4,400 off of the Armada full-sized SUV.

Overall, the price adjustments affect vehicles that represent two-thirds of Nissan's U.S. sales volume.

The Energy Information Administration released its weekly report on the status of petroleum inventories in the United States today.

Here are some highlights:

CRUDE INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories increased by 0.2 million barrels to a total of 395.5 million barrels. At 395.5 million barrels, inventories are 16.0 million barrels above last year (4.2%) and are well above the upper limit of the average range.

GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories decreased by 0.9 million barrels to 215.1 million barrels. At 215.1 million barrels, inventories are up 8.0 million barrels, or 3.8% more than last year. Here's how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared last week: East Coast (-0.2mb); Midwest (-1.3mb); Gulf Coast (+0.9mb); Rockies (-0.6mb); and West Coast (+0.3mb). It is important to note which regions saw increases/decreases as this information likely drives prices up (in the case of falling inventories), or down (in the case of rising inventories).

DISTILLATE (diesel, heating oil) INVENTORIES:
Distillate inventories increased by 1.8 million barrels to a total of 117.6 million barrels. At 117.6 million barrels, inventories are now 2.7% lower than a year ago. Total distillate inventories stand 3.2 million barrels lower than their year ago level.

It's great to talk about 'workzone safety' and awareness as we all drive through construction areas but the reality is that heightened awareness is something we need 52 weeks each year.

In Ohio the problem recently gained greater attention for all the wrong reasons. On April 15th ODOT director Jerry Wray said that according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the number of deaths in construction zones because of vehicle crashes doubled from eight in 2009 to 16 in 2011 in Ohio. Those numbers are the most recent available and include both motorists and construction workers.

But just a week later he announced the death of 27-year-old Lee M. Rizor, a five year ODOT employee killed on the job April 22.