Amended in Senate September 4, 2015

Amended in Senate July 6, 2015

Amended in Assembly March 19, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1250

Introduced by Assembly Member Bloom

February 27, 2015

An act to amend Section 35554 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1250, as amended, Bloom. Vehicles: buses: axle weight.

Existing law, operative January 1, 2016, provides that the gross weight on any one axle of a bus shall not exceed 20,500 pounds. Existing law exempts from this limitation a transit bus procured through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was issued before January 1, 2013. A violation of this provision is a crime.

This bill would exempt from the weight limitation transit buses procured through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was issued before January 1, 2016. begin insert The bill would provide that the weight limitation would not apply to a bus purchased during an option period in a multiyear contract to purchase transit buses that is entered into before January 1, 2016, by a publicly owned or operated transit system, or an operator of a transit system under contract with a publicly owned or operated transit system, provided that the option period does not exceed 5 years from the date of the original contract, or extend beyond January 1, 2021, whichever is earlier. end insert This bill would also establish certain weight limitations for transit buses procured through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was issued at a specified time. The bill would provide that these provisions do not authorize the operation of a transit bus on a bridge begin insert or certain other structures end insert if the gross weight of the begin insert transit end insert bus begin delete exceeds the single vehicle maximum weight limit to which that bridge was designed, except as specified. end delete begin insert is greater than the maximum weight which the bridge or other structure can safely sustain. end insert Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

begin insert

The bill would require a transit operator operating an articulated bus to provide notice, by July 1, 2016, to all cities and counties in whose jurisdiction the bus will operate in the upcoming calendar year, of the approximate routes upon which the bus will operate. The bill would also require an annual notice by July 1 thereafter to all cities and counties under whose jurisdiction the bus will operate, identifying any changes to the service on those routes or any new routes upon which the bus is expected to be scheduled for the upcoming calendar year.

end insert

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 35554 of the Vehicle Code, as amended
by Section 2 of Chapter 263 of the Statutes of 2014, is amended
to read:

35554.  

(a) (1) Notwithstanding Section 35550, the maximum
gross weight on any one axle of a bus shall not exceed 20,500
pounds.

(2) This subdivision does not apply to a transit bus procured
through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was
issued before January 1, 2016. begin insert This subdivision does not apply to
a bus purchased during an option period in a multiyear contract
to purchase transit buses that is entered into before January 1,
2016, by a publicly owned or operated transit system, or an
operator of a transit system under contract with a publicly owned
or operated transit system, provided, however, that the option
period does not exceed five years from the date of the original
contract, or extend beyond January 1, 2021, whichever is earlier. end insert

(b) A transit bus is not subject to Section 35550.

(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the following provisions
shall apply to a transit bus:

(1) The unladen weight on any one axle of a transit bus procured
through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was
issued between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2017, shall
not exceed 25,000 pounds.

(2) The unladen weight on any one axle of a transit bus procured
through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was
issued between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019, shall
not exceed 24,000 pounds.

(3) The unladen weight on any one axle of a transit bus procured
through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was
issued between January 1, 2020, and December 31, 2021, shall
not exceed 23,000 pounds.

(4) The unladen weight on any one axle of a transit bus procured
through a solicitation process pursuant to which a solicitation was
issued on or after January 1, 2022, shall not exceed 22,000 pounds.

(d) Nothing in this article shall be construed to authorize begin delete the
operation of a transit bus on a bridge if the gross weight of the
transit bus exceeds the single vehicle maximum weight limit to
which that bridge was designed, unless the agency owning and
operating the transit bus has obtained a permit from the agency
owning the bridge to operate such a transit bus on that bridge. end delete begin insert a
vehicle described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) or described
in end insert begin insert subdivision (c) to be operated in violation of Section 35753. end insert

begin insert

(e) A transit operator operating an articulated transit bus shall,
by July 1, 2016, provide notice to all cities and counties in whose
jurisdiction the bus will operate in the upcoming calendar year,
identifying the approximate routes upon which the bus is expected
to be scheduled for service, including the names of streets and
roads upon which that service is likely to take place. Thereafter,
a transit operator operating an articulated transit bus shall
annually provide notice by July 1, to all cities and counties in
whose jurisdiction the bus will operate in the upcoming calendar
year, identifying any changes to the service on those routes and
any new routes upon which the bus is expected to be scheduled
for the upcoming year. The notice shall include data from
information provided by the bus manufacturer to the transit
operator, identifying the weight of the articulated bus.

end insert

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.