Amended in Senate August 19, 2016

Amended in Senate June 8, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 15, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2731

Introduced by Assembly Member O'Donnell

February 19, 2016

An act to amend Section 35700.5 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2731, as amended, O'Donnell. Vehicles: Terminal Island Freeway: special permits.

Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation, upon adoption of an ordinance or resolution by the City of Carson, the City of Long Beach, and the City of Los Angeles, to issue a special permit to the operator of a vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment, permitting the operation and movement of the vehicle, combination, or equipment, and its load, on specified routes in those cities if the vehicle, combination, or equipment meets specified criteria. Under existing law, those criteria include that the vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment is used to transport intermodal cargo containers that are moving in international commerce, and that the maximum gross weight of the vehicles and loads not exceed 95,000 pounds gross vehicle weight.

This bill would require begin delete the above-mentioned ordinance or resolution to conform with the weight limits determined by the Department of Transportation. end delete begin insert the City of Carson, the City of Long Beach, and the City of Los Angeles to use and enforce the axle and gross vehicle weight limits used by the Department of Transportation for a permitted vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment operating or moving on the above-described routes by individual, and not combined, axle group calculations. end insert

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

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

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following: end insert

begin insert

(a) Heavy container corridors connect the Ports of Los Angeles
and Long Beach to warehouses and distribution centers throughout
the port area.

end insert begin insert

(b) These corridors allow port customers to move certain types
of heavy cargo, such as agricultural goods, and from the port
complex, which enhance the competitiveness of the two ports.

end insert begin insert

(c) These specially designated corridors include streets located
in the Cities of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Carson, as well as
California state routes. Overweight trucks that have a gross vehicle
weight in excess of 80,000 pounds, but no more than 95,000
pounds, are allowed to operate on heavy container corridors upon
issuance of permits from their respective jurisdictions.

end insert begin insert

(d) The Cities of Long Beach and Carson share a common
method of determining whether a truck is overweight while
traversing heavy container corridors. However, the City of Los
Angeles currently uses a different method of determining whether
a truck is overweight.

end insert begin insert

(e) This difference causes confusion, results in users of the heavy
container corridors in the City of Los Angeles to incur fines and
penalties, and incentivizes noncompliance with safety measures
required on the corridors.

end insert begin insert

(f) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this act that the
Cities of Los Angeles, Carson, and Long Beach all utilize the same
methodology to enforce the weight limits established by permits
issued by the Department of Transportation for trucks traveling
along heavy container corridors.

end insert

begin delete SECTION 1. end delete

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

Section 35700.5 of the Vehicle Code is amended to
read:

35700.5.  

(a) The Department of Transportation, upon adoption
of an ordinance or resolution that is in conformance with the
provisions of this section by the City of Carson, the City of Long
Beach, and the City of Los Angeles, covering designated routes,
may issue a special permit to the operator of a vehicle, combination
of vehicles, or mobile equipment, permitting the operation and
movement of the vehicle, combination, or equipment, and its load,
on the 3.66-mile portion of State Route 47 and State Route 103
known as the Terminal Island Freeway, between Willow Street in
the City of Long Beach and Terminal Island in the City of Long
Beach and the City of Los Angeles, and on the 2.4-mile portion
of State Highway Route 1, that is between Sanford Avenue in the
City of Los Angeles and Harbor Avenue in the City of Long Beach,
if the vehicle, combination, or equipment meets all of the following
criteria:

(1) The vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment
is used to transport intermodal cargo containers that are moving
in international commerce.

(2) The vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment,
in combination with its load, has a maximum gross weight in excess
of the maximum gross weight limit of vehicles and loads specified
in this chapter, but does not exceed 95,000 pounds gross vehicle
weight.

(3) (A) The vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile
equipment conforms to the axle weight limits specified in Section
35550.

(B) The vehicle, combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment
conforms to the axle weight limits in Section 35551, except as
specified in subparagraph (C).

(C) Vehicles, combinations of vehicles, or mobile equipment
that impose more than 80,000 pounds total gross weight on the
highway by any group of two or more consecutive axles, exceed
60 feet in length between the extremes of any group of two or more
consecutive axles, or have more than six axles shall conform to
weight limits that shall be determined by the Department of
Transportation.

(b) The permit issued by the Department of Transportation shall
be required to authorize the operation or movement of a vehicle,
combination of vehicles, or mobile equipment described in
subdivision (a). The permit shall not authorize the movement of
hazardous materials or hazardous wastes, as those terms are defined
by local, state, and federal law. The following criteria shall be
included in the application for the permit:

(1) A description of the loads and vehicles to be operated under
the permit.

(2) An agreement wherein each applicant agrees to be
responsible for all injuries to persons and for all damage to real or
personal property of the state and others directly caused by or
resulting from the operation of the applicant’s vehicles or
combination of vehicles under the conditions of the permit. The
applicant shall agree to hold harmless and indemnify the state and
all its agents for all costs or claims arising out of or caused by the
movement of vehicles or combination of vehicles under the
conditions of the permit.

(3) The applicant shall provide proof of financial responsibility
that covers the movement of the shipment as described in
subdivision (a). The insurance shall meet the minimum
requirements established by law.

(4) An agreement to carry a copy of the permit in the vehicle
at all times and furnish the copy upon request of an employee of
the Department of the California Highway Patrol or the Department
of Transportation.

(5) An agreement to place an indicia, developed by the
Department of Transportation, in consultation with the Department
of the California Highway Patrol, upon the vehicle identifying it
as a vehicle possibly operating under this section. The indicia shall
be displayed in the lower right area of the front windshield of the
power unit. The Department of Transportation may charge a fee
to cover the cost of producing and issuing this indicia.

(c) The permit issued pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be valid
for one year. The permit may be canceled by the Department of
Transportation for any of the following reasons:

(1) The failure of the applicant to maintain any of the conditions
required pursuant to subdivision (b).

(2) The failure of the applicant to maintain a satisfactory rating,
as required by Section 34501.12.

(3) A determination by the Department of Transportation that
there is sufficient cause to cancel the permit because the continued
movement of the applicant’s vehicles under the permit would
jeopardize the safety of the motorists on the roadway or result in
undue damage to the highways listed in this section.

(d) This section does not authorize an applicant or holder of a
special permit under subdivision (a) to operate a vehicle or
combination of vehicles in excess of the maximum gross weight
limit of vehicles and loads specified in this chapter outside of the
designated corridors identified in subdivision (a). A violation of
this subdivision shall result in the revocation of the permit.

(e) The Department of Transportation may charge a fee to cover
the cost of issuing a permit pursuant to subdivision (a).

(f) Notwithstanding Section 35700 and Article 6 (commencing
with Section 35780), begin delete if end delete the City of Carson, the City of Long Beach,
and the City of Los Angeles begin delete adopt an ordinance or resolution, as
described in subdivision (a), the ordinance or resolution shall
conform with the weight limits determined by the Department of
Transportation pursuant to this section. end delete begin insert shall use and enforce the
axle and gross vehicle weight limits used by the Department of
Transportation for a permitted vehicle, combination of vehicles,
or mobile equipment operating or moving on a route described in
subdivision (a) by individual, and not combined, axle group
calculations. end insert