BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 1535
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 25, 2012

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                  AB 1535 (Halderman) - As Amended:  March 14, 2012 

          Policy Committee:                              
          TransportationVote:11-0 (Consent)

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          Yes    Reimbursable:              Yes

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires Caltrans and local transportation 
          authorities, when replacing high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane 
          signs in areas where motorcycles are permitted, to indicate on 
          the signs that motorcycles are permitted in the HOV lane.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Costs to replace existing signs are generally minor and 
          absorbable. However, Caltrans, however, has expressed an 
          operational concern: installing a revised sign when an existing 
          sign must be replaced will result in a haphazard patchwork of 
          signage around the state, which exacerbates the kind of motorist 
          confusion the bill is trying to alleviate.

          Caltrans asserts that the only way to responsibly implement this 
          bill would be to install signage throughout an entire HOV 
          corridor, and probably throughout a geographic region, over a 
          short timeframe. Caltrans estimates a statewide cost to replace 
          all signs, based on 3,500 HOV lane miles, of $7 million. This 
          work would probably to be accomplished over two to three years. 
          �State Highway Account]
           
          COMMENTS  

           1)Background  . AB 340 (Floyd)/Chapter 143 of 1991, authorized the 
            use of motorcycles in HOV lanes, unless specifically 
            prohibited by a traffic control device. Prior to AB 340, 
            Caltrans used "Motorcycles OK" signs on HOV lanes and onramps 
            to designate specific HOV lane segments as suitable for 
            motorcycle use. The department began removing these signs 








                                                                  AB 1535
                                                                  Page  2

            after AB 340 rendered them unnecessary.

           2)Purpose  . The author has introduced AB 1535 to ensure that 
            motorists understand the rules of motorcycle usage within HOV 
            lanes. The author asserts that a lack of adequate notification 
            puts motorcyclists at risk.

           3)Prior Legislation  . AB 2617 (Duvall) of 2008, which would have 
            required Caltrans or local authorities to ensure signs posted 
            along HOV lanes indicate motorcycles are permitted in the 
            lanes, was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger, who argued the 
            bill required a "significant expenditure" to post and replace 
            and that the need for "this costly signage program" had not 
            been conclusively established.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081