BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



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          Date of Hearing:  June 20, 2016


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION


                                 Jim Frazier, Chair


          SB  
          1051 (Hancock) - As Amended June 14, 2016


          SENATE VOTE:  37-0


          SUBJECT:  Vehicles:  parking enforcement:  video image evidence


          SUMMARY:  Authorizes the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District  
          (AC Transit), until 


          January 1, 2022, to enforce parking violations in transit-only  
          traffic lanes.  Specifically, this bill:
          1)Authorizes the AC Transit, until January 1, 2022, to enforce  
            parking violations in transit-only traffic lanes using  
            bus-mounted video cameras and in accordance with specified  
            requirements.


          2)Requires AC Transit, if it implements an automated enforcement  
            system in transit-only lanes, to provide the transportation  
            and judiciary committees of the Legislature an evaluation of  
            the enforcement system's effectiveness, impact on privacy,  
            cost to implement, and generation of revenue no later than  
            January 1, 2021.










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          3)Makes findings and declarations regarding video enforcement of  
            parking violations.


          4)Defines a variety of terms.





          EXISTING LAW:   





          1)Authorizes the City and County of San Francisco to install  
            automated forward facing parking control devices on city-owned  
            public transit vehicles for the purpose of video imaging  
            parking violations occurring in transit-only traffic lanes.  

          2)Defines a "transit-only traffic lane" to mean any designated  
            transit-only lane on which use is restricted to mass transit  
            vehicles, or other designated vehicles including taxis and  
            vanpools, during posted times.  

          3)Provides that a violation of any regulation governing the  
            standing or parking of a vehicle under the Vehicle Code,  
            federal statute or regulation, or local ordinance, is subject  
            to a civil penalty.  

          4)Authorizes designated employees of the City and County of San  
            Francisco to review video image recordings for the purpose of  
            determining whether a parking violation occurred in a  
            transit-only traffic lane, and permits alleged violators to  
            review the video image evidence of the alleged violation  
            during normal business hours at no cost.  

          5)Requires automated forward facing parking control devices to  








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            be angled and focused so as to capture video images of parking  
            violations and not unnecessarily capture identifying images of  
            other drivers, vehicles, and pedestrians.  

          6)Requires that prior to issuing notices of parking violations  
            in transit-only lanes using bus-mounted video equipment, the  
            City and County of San Francisco commence a program to issue  
            only warning notices for 30 days and make a public  
            announcement of the program at least 30 days prior to  
            commencement of issuing notices of parking violations.  
          


          FISCAL EFFECT:  Unknown, this bill is keyed non-fiscal by the  
          Legislative Counsel.


          COMMENTS:  AC Transit is in the process of building a Bus Rapid  
          Transit (BRT) corridor that will employ dedicated, bus-only  
          lanes.  The BRT is expected to increase transit reliability and  
          reduce travel times along an arterial corridor through the  
          cities of Berkeley, Oakland, and San Leandro.  The BRT is  
          expected to turn what was once a 45-minute trip though the  
          corridor into a 30-minute trip using state-of-the art buses,  
          rail-like stations, and dedicated bus-only lanes.  The BRT  
          service is expected to begin in late 2017.

          AC Transit is concerned that their efforts to improve trip times  
          along the corridor could be hampered by the growing problem of  
          vehicles stopping or illegally parking in BRT lanes thereby  
          impeding throughput.  If this occurs, as it did in the City and  
          County of San Francisco, AC Transit will have difficulties  
          maintaining reliable transit schedules that could, ultimately,  
          impact transit ridership.  In San Francisco, this problem was  
          successfully addressed with the passage of AB 101 (Ma), Chapter  
          377, Statutes of 2007, that provided the San Francisco Municipal  
          Transportation Agency (SFMTA) the ability to operate a pilot  
          program whereby transit buses were equipped with forward-facing  
          cameras to record images of vehicles that are stopped or parked  








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          in transit-only lanes and issue parking citations based on that  
          video evidence.  The program improved the safety, reliability,  
          and performance of SFMTA transit vehicles using San Francisco's  
          transit-only lanes as shown in studies required in AB 101 and  
          subsequent legislation including AB 1041 (Ma), Chapter 325,  
          Statutes of 2011, and AB 1287 (Chiu), Chapter 485, Statutes of  
          2015.  

          To address concerns that AC Transit's BRT service could be  
          hampered by parking and standing of vehicles, the author has  
          introduced this bill which would authorize AC Transit, until  
          January 1, 2022, to equip transit buses with forward-facing  
          parking control devices to record images of vehicles parked in  
          transit-only lanes and to issue parking citations based on that  
          video evidence.  SB 1051 contains the same privacy and  
          procedural requirements as SFMTA's program.  The author points  
          out that SFMTA's program has proven to be an effective tool in  
          reducing the problem of parking and standing of vehicles in  
          transit-only lanes and, therefore, it stands to reason that AC  
          Transit should be afforded with similar authority to ensure its  
          BRT corridor operates as planned.  

          Based on the results of SFMTA's initial pilot and the subsequent  
          report to the Legislature pursuant to AB 101 and AB 1041, it  
          appears that SFMTA's transit only lane program has been a  
          success.  In their March 2015 report entitled "Transit-Only Lane  
          Enforcement (TOLE) Pilot Program Evaluation," SFMTA notes that  
          the program improved safety and reliability of their transit  
          programs, acted as a deterrent to motorists obstructing San  
          Francisco's transit-only lanes, provided privacy protections,  
          enhanced transit safety and accessibility, and did not act as a  
          revenue generator for the local jurisdiction.  The report's  
          recommendations included making the pilot program permanent and  
          expanding the program to allow ticketing of illegally parked  
          cars in non-dedicated lanes, as well as blocking intersections.   
          AB 1287 was introduced to include these recommendations but,  
          ultimately, only addressed the removal of the sunset on SFMTA's  
          existing pilot program.
          Given the substantial investment that AC Transit is making to  








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          create its BRT program, it would be unfortunate for if it were  
          unable to function at optimum levels because of unenforced  
          vehicle parking and standing violations in the BRT lane. Given  
          that SFMTA's program has shown a 47% decrease in bus zone  
          violations and a 44% decrease in double parking violations in  
          transit-only lanes, it stands to reason that AC Transit should  
          be afforded similar authority to ensure the success of their BRT  
          program.  If successfully implemented, AC Transit's BRT program  
          will not only reduce travel times along the corridor, but it  
          will also have the residual benefits of reducing harmful vehicle  
          emissions and reducing roadway congestion by making transit a  
          more attractive option.

          Double-referral:  This bill will be referred to the Assembly  
          Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection should it pass out  
          of this committee.



          Related legislation:  SB 998 (Wieckowski) would create an  
          infraction for parking in a transit-only traffic lane.  SB 998  
          passed out of the Senate and is set to be heard by this  
          committee on June 27, 2016.

          SB 218 (Huff) would have prohibited the use of stop-sign cameras  
          by the Mountain Recreation and Conservation Authority.  SB 218  
          passed out of the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee  
          but failed passage in the Senate Natural Resources Committee.

          Previous legislation:  AB 1287 (Chiu), Chapter 485, Statutes of  
          2015, removed the sunset on the authority of the City and County  
          of San Francisco's pilot program for video enforcement of  
          parking violations in transit-only traffic lanes.

          AB 1041 (Ma), Chapter 325, Statutes of 2011, extended the sunset  
          on the authority of the City and County of San Francisco's pilot  
          program for video enforcement of parking violations in  
          transit-only traffic lanes to January 1, 2016.









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          AB 101 (Ma), Chapter 377, Statutes of 2007, authorized the City  
          and County of San Francisco to establish a pilot program for  
          video enforcement of parking violations in transit-only traffic  
          lanes which expired January 1, 2012.



          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (Sponsor)


          Alameda County Transportation Commission


          California Public Parking Association


          San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit




          Opposition


          None




          Analysis Prepared by:Victoria Alvarez / TRANS. / (916)  
          319-2093








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