BILL NUMBER: AB 348 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Buchanan
FEBRUARY 10, 2011
An act to amend Section 97 of the Streets and Highways Code,
relating to highways.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 348, as introduced, Buchanan. Highways.
Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to
designate a state highway segment as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine
Zone if specified conditions are met, including that the governing
board of the city or county in which the segment is located has by
resolution indicated that it supports the designation.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to that
provision.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 97 of the Streets and Highways Code is amended
to read:
97. (a) A state highway segment shall be designated by the
department as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone if all of the
following conditions have been satisfied:
(1) The highway segment is eligible for designation pursuant to
subdivision (b).
(2) The Director of Transportation, in consultation with the
Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol, certifies that the
segment identified in subdivision (b) meets all of the following
criteria:
(A) The highway segment is a conventional highway or expressway
and is part of the state highway system.
(B) The rate of total collisions per mile per year on the segment
under consideration has been at least 1.5 times the statewide average
for similar roadway types during the most recent three-year period
for which data are available.
(C) The rate of head-on collisions per mile per year on the
segment under consideration has been at least 1.5 times the statewide
average for similar roadway types during the most recent three-year
period for which data are available.
(3) The Department of the California Highway Patrol or local
agency having traffic enforcement jurisdiction, as the case may be,
has concurred with the designation.
(4) The governing board of each city, or county with respect to an
unincorporated area, in which the segment is located has ,
by resolution , indicated that it supports the
designation.
(5) An active public awareness effort to change driving behavior
is ongoing either by the local agency with jurisdiction over the
segment or by another state or local entity.
(6) Other traffic safety enhancements, including, but not limited
to, increased enforcement and other roadway safety measures, are in
place or are being implemented concurrent with the designation of the
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone.
(b) The following segments are eligible for designation as a
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone pursuant to subdivision (a):
State Highway Route 12 between the State Highway Route 80 junction
in Solano County and the State Highway Route 5 junction in San
Joaquin County.
(c) Designation of a segment as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine
Zone by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be done in
writing and a written notification shall be provided to the court
with jurisdiction over the area in which the highway segment is
located. The designation shall be valid for a minimum of two years
from the date of submission to the court.
(d) After the two-year period, and at least every two years
thereafter, the department, in consultation with the Department of
the California Highway Patrol, shall evaluate whether the highway
segment continues to meet the conditions set forth in subdivision
(a). If the segment meets those conditions, the department shall
renew the designation in which case an updated notification shall be
sent to the court. If the department, in consultation with the
Department of the California Highway Patrol, determines that any of
those conditions no longer apply to a segment designated as a Safety
Enhancement-Double Fine Zone under this section, the department shall
revoke the designation and the segment shall cease to be a Safety
Enhancement-Double Fine Zone.
(e) A Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone is subject to the rules
and regulations adopted by the department prescribing uniform
standards for warning signs to notify motorists that, pursuant to
Section 42010 of the Vehicle Code, increased penalties apply for
traffic violations that are committed within a Safety
Enhancement-Double Fine Zone.
(f) (1) The department or the local authority having jurisdiction
over these highway and road segments shall place and maintain the
warning signs identifying these segments by stating that a "Special
Safety Zone Region Begins Here" and a "Special Safety Zone Ends Here."
(2) Increased penalties shall apply to violations under Section
42010 of the Vehicle Code only if appropriate signage is in place
pursuant to this subdivision.
(3) If designation as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone is
revoked pursuant to subdivision (d), the department shall be
responsible for removal of all signage placed pursuant to this
subdivision.
(g) Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zones do not increase the civil
liability of the state or local authority having jurisdiction over
the highway segment under Division 3.6 (commencing with Section 810)
of Title 1 of the Government Code or any other provision of law
relating to civil liability.
(1) Only the base fine shall be enhanced pursuant to this section.
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any additional
penalty, forfeiture, or assessment imposed by any other statute shall
be based on the amount of the base fine before enhancement or
doubling and shall not be based on the amount of the enhanced fine
imposed pursuant to this section.
(h) The projects specified as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine
Zone shall not be elevated in priority for state funding purposes.
(i) The requirements of subdivision (a) shall not apply to the
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone established prior to the
effective date of this subdivision pursuant to Section 97.4 or to the
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zones established pursuant to Section
97.5.
(j) The department shall conduct an evaluation of the
effectiveness of all double fine zones, except those designated
pursuant to Section 97.5, that will terminate the same calendar year
and submit its findings in one report to the Assembly Committee on
Transportation and the Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing
one year prior to the termination of the double fine zones. The
report shall include a recommendation on whether the zones should be
reauthorized by the Legislature.