BILL ANALYSIS
AB 564
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 564 (Portantino)
As Amended May 5, 2009
Majority vote
TRANSPORTATION 8-3
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Ayes:|Jeffries, Blumenfield, | | |
| |Buchanan, Conway, | | |
| |Furutani, Galgiani, | | |
| |Bonnie Lowenthal, Solorio | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Miller, Niello, John A. | | |
| |Perez | | |
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY : Amends the definition of a "local street or road,"
under the speed trap law, for the City of Pasadena, to mean a
street or road is either included in the latest maps submitted
to the federal highway Administration (FHWA) or is not wider
than 40 feet, longer than one-half mile, or more than one lane
in each direction.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Defines a local street or road, under the speed trap
exemption, by the latest functional usage and federal-aid
system maps submitted to the Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA). When maps have not been submitted, local streets and
roads are defined as those not wider than 40 feet, or longer
than one-half mile, or with more than one lane in each
direction.
2)Defines a speed trap as a particular section of highway
measured and marked with boundaries to determine the speed of
a vehicle by calculating the time it takes the vehicle to
travel the known distance.
3)Defines a speed trap as a particular section of a highway with
a prima facie speed limit that is not justified by an
engineering and traffic survey (ETS) conducted within five
years from the time of an alleged violation and where
AB 564
Page 2
enforcement involves the use of radar or other electronic
devices which measure the speed of moving objects.
4)Prohibits the use in court of evidence of the speed of a
vehicle obtained on any highway segment meeting the definition
of speed trap.
5)Authorizes local jurisdictions to establish speed limits
according to the result of an ETS. An ETS gauges prevailing
speeds along a given route, takes into account accident
records, and highway, traffic, and roadside conditions not
readily apparent to the driver.
6)Provides for the establishment of prima facie speed limits
(i.e., in specified increments) in certain areas where it is
deemed necessary (i.e., near schools, in business districts or
in residential districts) without the benefit of a traffic
survey.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Under current law, local streets and roads are exempt
from the speed trap prohibition and defined by the functional
usage and federal-aid system maps submitted to the FHWA. If a
street is not shown on the maps, a local street is defined as
those not wider than 40 feet, or longer than one-half mile, or
with more than one lane in each direction. The sponsor of this
bill, the City of Pasadena, points out that in older urbanized
areas with grid street networks there "are examples of where
arterial and/or collector designations are present on streets
that are essentially identical to local streets."
This bill would redefine a local street or road to mean that it
either is defined as such on maps submitted to FHWA, or it meets
the existing definition of not being wider than 40 feet, or
longer than one-half mile, or with more than one lane in each
direction. This bill would allow that a local street or road be
defined under either option of the definition.
Under this bill, if a local street or road meets the existing
geographical definition and can be classified under the existing
definition of residence district, it is conceivable that a speed
limit could be set at 25 miles per hour (MPH), as is required by
law.
AB 564
Page 3
Under existing law a "residence district" is considered a
district within a quarter mile, that has continuous property
occupying 13 or more separate dwelling houses on one side of the
highway or 16 or more separate dwelling houses or business
structures on both side of the highway. State law requires a 25
MPH speed limit in business and residential districts, unless
conditions warrant a higher speed limit. Residential district
speed limits do not need to be posted to be enforceable.
By obtaining a residence district designation, a local street or
road would not need to conduct an engineering traffic study
(ETS) to set the speed limit. Under current law, state and
local authorities establish speed limits based on the results of
ETS which are designed to gauge prevailing speeds along a given
route. Speed limits are then usually set at or near the 85th
percentile (i.e., the speed that is adhered to by 85% of
motorists). Limits can be set at lower rates for any other
safety-related reasons.
The rationale behind the 85th percentile methodology, which has
been borne out by empirical studies is that 85% of motorists
drive at a safe and prudent speed and that setting speed limits
at a lower level will make lawbreakers out of otherwise
law-abiding citizens, thereby engendering disrespect for the
law.
California's speed trap law requires that an ETS be conducted
within five years from the date of a speeding ticket, if local
law enforcement utilizes radar or other electronic devices to
cite motorists. The use in court of evidence (i.e., radar
enforcement) obtained on any highway segment meeting the
definition of speed trap is prohibited.
In opposition, the Automobile Club of Southern California,
points out that this bill would allow roads to be "classified if
it meets certain dimensional characteristics without the added
criteria of determining the road's functional usage. With
higher traffic volumes, traffic on collectors and minor
arterials tends to move at slightly higher speeds than on
adjacent local streets, which is why those speed limits are
usually set 5-10 MPH than streets that are truly residential."
Previous legislation: AB 2767 (Jackson), Chapter 45, Statutes
AB 564
Page 4
of 2000, allowed local authorities to consider residential
density and bicycle and pedestrian safety as additional factors
in ETS conducted for purposes of setting speed limits.
Committee comments:
1)By redefining the definition of "local streets and roads,"
under this bill, it is possible that unrealistic posted speed
limits would be established without any regard to prevailing
speeds (85th percentile) or traffic characteristics of the
roadway. This could result in "speed traps" and speeding
citations for the overwhelming majority of drivers that are
driving these roads in a prudent and safe manner causing no
undue speed-related traffic hazards.
2)Under this bill, even though a locality can seek to establish
speed limit and speed enforcement parity by having
geographically similar local street and roads be treated
equally, their functionality does not permit that local
streets be treated the same. It is possible that a local
street, who meets the "residence district" definition, can
serve as a major arterial or connector. Under federal and
state law, arterials are defined as higher speed routes with
longer uninterrupted segments. On the other hand, local roads
tend to have slower speeds and little through-movement.
Currently, there is a process that exists through FHWA that
provide for functional classification changes of arterial,
collector, and local roads, if a locality believes that
changes are warranted.
Analysis Prepared by : Alejandro Esparza / TRANS. / (916)
319-2093
FN: 0000532