Latest news with #daylighting
CBS News
5 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Sacramento stalls on enforcing daylighting law aimed at improving pedestrians safety
SACRAMENTO — A California law aimed at pedestrian safety now bans cars from parking 20 feet from intersections. The law allows cities to issue fines to violators, but the City of Sacramento has not issued those fines even in the face of what some have called a pedestrian safety crisis. Slow Down Sacramento founder Isaac Gonzalez is calling on the city to speed up its conversion of city streets to follow state law. "We really shouldn't wait until people get hurt before we actually act and follow state law," Gonzalez said. "I think, unfortunately, in the city, we get decision paralysis. Where do we start? The problem is so huge." The so-called daylighting law requires all California cities to create 20 feet of space on the approaching side of intersections to prevent collisions. A City of Sacramento spokesperson confirmed that the city has not removed all meters, has not started red striping all the intersections, and is still working to identify how many spots need to be removed. Asad Mohammadi lives in Natomas, down the street from a new "quick-build" temporary traffic safety installation the city created after two pedestrians were killed in separate collisions. The installation went up after the second deadly collision. Asad Mohammadi /lives near deadly crash "It was a very sad day," Mohammadi said. "After that incident happened, then they put the sign up, they should have put it at the beginning." Sacramento's police department reports that so far this year, there have been 13 deadly collisions on city streets. Last year, there were 34. The year before, there were 55. Sacramento's own law and legislation committee declared an emergency in 2024 over the number of pedestrians killed in roadway collisions. "Let's talk about the cost-benefit ratio here," Gonzalez said. "What does it cost to paint a curb red, versus what does it cost for someone to die and for us to pay out a big lawsuit? I would rather be on the side of painting the curb red." The city council voted to approve a $25 fine starting July 1 for violators of the law. It will need to ID and remove spaces to begin that enforcement. What the rollout of that enforcement will look like is still unclear.
Daily Mail
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
The ultra-petty new California law that's tricking confused drivers into paying huge fines
California 's new 'daylighting' law is blindsiding drivers with steep fines for seemingly minor parking violations. The state-wide law, Assembly Bill 413, which went into effect March 1, bans parking within 20 feet of any crosswalk - marked or unmarked - to improve pedestrian visibility. But, many curbs aren't painted red up to the full 20 feet, creating confusion and costly tickets of nearly $120 for unsuspecting drivers. The new rules are so unclear that authorities in San Francisco said they would not fine drivers in violation. Meanwhile, officials in San Diego have written thousands of tickets to motorists. 'It's all about pedestrian safety,' Erin Longen, Parking Enforcement Supervisor with the San Diego Police Department, told Fox 5. 'It's basically that no one can park within 20 feet of an unmarked or marked crosswalk on the approach side of the crosswalk.' To raise awareness ahead of its enforcement, the SDPD began public outreach and issued warnings starting January 1. 'We handed out 1,500 warnings for two months - it was a little blue slip we would leave on cars we saw in violation,' Longen said. 'This helped get the word out ahead of the ticketing and enforcement.' Since enforcement began, more than 4,200 tickets have been issued, totaling nearly $500,000 in fines. 'We've written over 4,200 tickets, which sounds like a high number, but it's less than 10 percent of the tickets we're writing as an agency,' Longen added. In San Diego, most 'daylighting' tickets are being handed out in high-trafficked areas and popular neighborhoods like La Jolla, North Park, Hillcrest, Normal Heights, University Heights, Ocean Beach, and Pacific Beach. 'We're ticketing it citywide, and, obviously, the more impacted areas are going to be where more people live, right?' Longen said. Although the law is meant to reduce pedestrian accidents by improving sightlines at intersections, its rollout has been rocky. Drivers continue to be fined even when curbs aren't painted red to clearly mark the 20-foot zone. Cities like San Francisco have declined to enforce the law due to these challenges, while San Diego has forged ahead. Officials say over 1,000 intersections have been reviewed, with red curbs added at more than 200 and 97 parking meters removed. 'To make it easier for drivers to follow this new law, [San Diego] City teams have evaluated more than 1,000 of the busiest intersections in the densest areas of San Diego,' City of San Diego spokesperson Anthony Santacroce told SFGate. 'Nationwide, 43 states already have daylighting laws, and most prohibit parking within 20 feet of an intersection,' Santacroce added. 'The average length of an automobile in the United States is approximately 14 feet. To help estimate 20 feet, it may be helpful to envision about one car length and a half's worth of distance. Despite these efforts, many curbs remain unmarked, putting drivers at risk of violating the law. The $117 fine is nearly triple the previous $40 penalty, after a decision by the city of San Diego to raise all ticket prices in a search for revenue to help plug a $258 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, NBCSanDiego reported. It is projected to generate up to $3 million for the city by year's end.
