Amended in Assembly March 9, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1746

Introduced by Assembly Member Mark Stone

February 2, 2016

An act to amend Section 148.1 of the Streets and Highways Code, and to amend Section 21650 of the Vehicle Code, relating to transportation.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1746, as amended, Mark Stone. Transit buses.

Existing law authorizes the Monterey-Salinas Transit District and the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District to conduct a transit bus-only program using the shoulders of certain state highways as transit bus-only traffic corridors, subject to approval by the Department of Transportation and the Department of the California Highway Patrol. Existing law requires that the highway segments to be used for the program are to be jointly determined by the districts, the department, and the Department of the California Highway Patrol, and imposes other conditions and requirements.

Existing law creates the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, the North County Transit District, the San Diego Association of Governments, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority with various powers and duties relative to the operation of public transit.

This bill would additionally authorize the operation of transit buses on the shoulder of a segment of a state highway designated under the program within the areas served by the transit services of the 6 entities described above, subject to the same conditions and requirements. begin insert Two years after commencing the operation of the program, the bill would require a participating entity, in conjunction with the department and the Department of the California Highway Patrol, to submit a report to the Legislature that includes specified information about the program. The bill would also require the participating entity to post the report on its Internet Web site to enable the public to access the report. end insert

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 148.1 of the Streets and Highways Code
is amended to read:

148.1.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the Alameda-Contra
Costa Transit District, the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority,
the Monterey-Salinas Transit District, the North County Transit
District, the San Diego Association of Governments, the San Diego
Metropolitan Transit System, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation
Authority, and the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District may
conduct a transit bus-only program using the shoulders of certain
highways in the state highway system within the areas served by
the transit services of each entity, with the approval of the
department and the Department of the California Highway Patrol.
The department, the Department of the California Highway Patrol,
and each participating transit entity shall jointly determine the
segments of each highway where it is appropriate to designate the
shoulders as transit bus-only traffic corridors, based upon factors
that shall include, but are not limited to, right-of-way availability
and capacity, peak congestion hours, and the most heavily
congested areas. Under the program, the participating transit
entities shall actively work with the department and the Department
of the California Highway Patrol to develop guidelines that ensure
driver and vehicle safety and the integrity of the infrastructure.

(b) The development of the guidelines shall be done with
transparency, including the opportunity for public comment.

(c) The department and the participating transit entities shall
monitor the state of repair of highway shoulders used in the
program, including repairs attributable to the operation of transit
buses on the shoulders.

(d) The participating transit entities shall be responsible for all
costs attributable to this program, including costs related to repairs
attributable to the operation of transit buses on shoulders.

(e) The program may commence operation as soon as guidelines
are agreed to by the participating transit entities, the department,
and the Department of the California Highway Patrol.

begin insert

(f) (1) Two years after commencing the operation of the
program, a participating transit entity, in conjunction with the
department and the Department of the California Highway Patrol,
shall submit a report to the Legislature that includes all of the
following:

end insert begin insert

(A) Information regarding the geographic scope of the program.

end insert begin insert

(B) A copy of the guidelines agreed to by the participating entity,
the department, and the Department of the California Highway
Patrol.

end insert begin insert

(C) Information about any highway modifications.

end insert begin insert

(D) Information regarding the costs associated with the
program.

end insert begin insert

(E) Performance measures used to evaluate the success of the
program, such as safety, freeway operations, and transit travel
time reliability and savings.

end insert begin insert

(2) The participating entity shall post the report required by
this subdivision on its Internet Web site to enable the public to
access the report.

end insert begin insert

(3) The report submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
Code.

end insert begin delete

(f)

end delete

begin insert ( end insert begin insert g) end insert  As used in this section, “highway” includes “freeway.”

SEC. 2.  

Section 21650 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:

21650.  

Upon all highways, a vehicle shall be driven upon the
right half of the roadway, except as follows:

(a) When overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding
in the same direction under the rules governing that movement.

(b) When placing a vehicle in a lawful position for, and when
the vehicle is lawfully making, a left turn.

(c) When the right half of a roadway is closed to traffic under
construction or repair.

(d) Upon a roadway restricted to one-way traffic.

(e) When the roadway is not of sufficient width.

(f) When the vehicle is necessarily traveling so slowly as to
impede the normal movement of traffic, that portion of the highway
adjacent to the right edge of the roadway may be utilized
temporarily when in a condition permitting safe operation.

(g) This section does not prohibit the operation of bicycles on
any shoulder of a highway, on any sidewalk, on any bicycle path
within a highway, or along any crosswalk or bicycle path crossing,
where the operation is not otherwise prohibited by this code or
local ordinance.

(h) This section does not prohibit the operation of a transit bus
on the shoulder of a state highway in conjunction with the
implementation of a program authorized pursuant to Section 148.1
of the Streets and Highways Code on state highways within the
areas served by the transit services of the Alameda-Contra Costa
Transit District, the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, the
Monterey-Salinas Transit District, the North County Transit
District, the San Diego Association of Governments, the San Diego
Metropolitan Transit System, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation
Authority, or the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District.