A Guide to New State Laws Affecting Drivers From the Automobile Club
28 December 1999
A Guide to New State Laws Affecting Drivers From the Automobile Club; Laws In Effect Jan. 1 Will Change Existing Rules, Add New Driver Regulations
LOS ANGELES--Dec. 28, 1999--As the calendars change from '99 to '00, the millennium will usher in a host of changes to California laws affecting drivers, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California.Among the new laws taking effect Jan. 1:
-- Solo drivers in some low-polluting vehicles will be able to
use carpool lanes.
-- Drivers ticketed for running through railroad warning signals
will pay increased penalties.
-- The 1998 law requiring vehicles to stop near halted school
buses has been clarified.
-- Department of Motor Vehicles information is subject to greater
privacy restrictions.
"California motorists, passengers and bicyclists will benefit from several laws that were passed with safety as a primary concern," said Alice Bisno, government relations manager for the Auto Club.
The new laws of interest to motorists include:
Arm signals -- SB 533 requires motorists whose vehicles are equipped with turn signal lights to use only those signals and not hand and arm signals to signify their intent to make a turn. Only drivers whose vehicles do not have turn signals or whose turn signals are inoperable may use hand and arm signals.
Bicycle signals -- Motorists and bicycles will soon be seeing new color-lighted bicycle symbols on some traffic lights as a result of AB 134. The special signals can now be installed in intersections with unusually high volumes of bicycle traffic as an additional safety measure.
Carpool lanes -- SB 63 reduces the minimum number of occupants required in vehicles in the carpool lanes of the San Bernardino Freeway (Route 10) from three to two. AB 71 allows certain low-emission vehicles to use carpool lanes regardless of the number of occupants in the vehicle and requires the DMV to develop distinctive decals for use on such vehicles.
Commercial vehicles -- Commercial vehicle drivers who drive in excess of 15 miles per hour over the maximum speed limit on a highway will be guilty of a misdemeanor under AB 1650. This action constitutes a "serious traffic violation" and is subject to additional sanctions.
DMV documents -- Unless authorized by the licensee, the DMV is prohibited from selling driver's license photographs or information about a driver's physical characteristics under AB 771. AB 289 authorizes an exemption to the requirement that registration information be maintained in the vehicle by allowing the owner to remove the registration card from an unattended vehicle.
License plates -- AB 1041 authorizes the creation of a special "Ronald Reagan Presidential Library" license plate. Motorists interested in the plates can apply for them at Auto Club and DMV offices, but won't receive them until 5,000 requests for the plates have been filed. AB 640 exempts holders of the following special license plates from the payment of certain fees: Pearl Harbor Survivor, Legion of Valor, Combat Wounded, Purple Heart and PH.
Low cost auto insurance -- By 7/1/00, certain low-income "good drivers" may purchase a low-cost, reduced benefits liability insurance policy through the California Assigned Risk Plan. Policies and procedures still are being developed to implement this law.
Proof of insurance -- The law requiring motorists to provide proof of insurance when they renew their vehicle registration and/or are stopped by a law enforcement officer for a suspected traffic violation is extended under SB 652. The bill also authorizes electronic reporting of such insurance information by insurers to the DMV. Fines for violating the mandatory insurance law are reduced, and courts can order violators to purchase and maintain auto insurance.
Rail crossing violations -- AB 923 increases the fine for evading a rail crossing barrier to $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense within the same year and $250 for subsequent offenses within the same year. These amounts do not include penalty assessments.
Safety systems -- AB 555 requires seat belts in all farm labor vehicles by 5/1/00. School buses manufactured after 1/1/02 and used in California must be equipped with seat belts unless prohibited by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, pursuant to AB 15. SB 363 requires auto insurance policies to cover replacement of child safety seats that were in use during an accident covered by the policy.
School bus stops -- AB 1573 provides additional exemptions from current law that requires motorists to stop for a school bus loading or unloading children. School bus drivers will no longer be required to activate flashing red stop lights if the bus is lawfully parked, when the bus is disabled due to mechanical breakdown, where pupils require assistance to board or leave the bus, when the roadway is covered with ice and stopping would create a hazard, and on a highway posted at 55 mph or higher and the bus is out of the travel lanes. The CHP may make exceptions to these rules. In addition, motorists traveling the opposite way on a divided or multilane (two lanes in either direction) highway need not stop for a school bus on the other roadway.
Traffic accidents -- SB 681 allows drivers involved in property damage-only accidents to move their vehicles off the main lanes of the highway to a nearby safe location unless doing so would cause a traffic hazard or injury.
Transit buses -- Motorists driving in Orange County will be part of a pilot program established under AB 1218 which requires other drivers to yield the right-of-way to a transit bus trying to reenter the traffic lane after loading or unloading passengers if the bus is equipped with a special yield sign and has directional signals flashing. The fine for violating this provision is $35 plus penalty assessments.
The Automobile Club of Southern California, the largest affiliate of the AAA, has been serving members since 1900. Today, the Auto Club's members benefit by the organization's emergency road service, insurance products and services, travel agency, financial products, automotive pricing, buying and financing programs, automotive testing and analysis, trip planning services, highway and transportation safety programs and legislative advocacy. Information about these products and services is available on the Auto Club's Web site at www.aaa-calif.com.
