New CA driving laws, are they real or fake??

Since I don't like the idea of people driving slower then they already are, I'm sharing it with all of my readers. Remember, fact check before you forward!

1. Carpool lane - 1st time $1068.50 starting 7/1/07 (The $271 posted on the highway is old). Don't do it again because 2nd time is going to be double. 3rd time triple, and 4th time license suspended. (The real fines are $376-386 depending on the country, I wonder if the guy who wrote this is even from California? Figures from SFGate article)

2. Incorrect lane change - $380. Don't cross the lane on solid lines or intersections. (inflated over the real (another one not mentioned and also inflated)

3. Block intersection - $485 (not mentioned)

4. Driving on the shoulder - $450 (not mentioned either)

5. Cell phone use in the construction zone. - Double fine as of 07/01/07. Cell phone use must be "hands free" while driving. (just states that hands free devices will be used by 1 Jul 08, no fines stated)

6. Passengers over 18 not in their seatbelts - both passengers and drivers get tickets (not mentioned but what was mentioned was driver and passenger would get fined if they knowingly let someone ride in the trunk).

7. Speeders can only drive 3 miles above the limit (nothing said about this).

8. DUI = JAIL (Stays on your driving record for 10 years!) (it says that there is an increase of the mandatory driver license suspension of 10 months if you get a DUI with a alcohol concentration of .20% or greater and if you are under 21 you get a fined for BAC over .01%)

9. As of 07/01/07 cell phone use must be "hands free" while driving. Ticket is $285. They will be looking for this like crazy - easy money for police department (look at number 5)


those are all false.. and here is why...

1. Carpool lane - 1st time $1068.50 starting 7/1/07 (The $271 posted on the highway is old). Don't do it again because 2nd time is going to be double. 3rd time triple, and 4th time license suspended.

The minimum suggested fine for a carpool lane violation (i.e., driving solo in a carpool lane) has increased from $271 to $380 (not $1068.50). There is no provision for automatically increasing the fine or suspending licenses for subsequent violations.

(In mid-June 2007, California was warned by the Federal Highway Administration that the state was not meeting federal guidelines for carpool lanes that require a minimum 45 mph speed at least 90% of the time during rush hours, so the CHP has been asked to step up enforcement against carpool-lane violators.)

2. Incorrect lane change - $380. Don't cross the lane on solid lines or intersections.

The recommended fine for an unsafe turn or illegal lane change is $146, not $380. (Incidentally, according to the California Highway Patrol, "it is not illegal to change lanes in an intersection if it is safe to do.")

3. Block intersection - $485

The recommended fine for blocking an intersection (i.e., gridlock) is $190, not $485.

4. Driving on the shoulder - $450

The recommended fine for unsafe passing on the right shoulder is $146, not $450.

5. Cell phone use in the construction zone. - Double fine as of 07/01/07. Cell phone use must be "hands free" while driving.

California law already allows for all traffic infraction fines to be doubled when an infraction occurs in a construction zone. The law requiring that motorists who engage in phone calls while driving must use "hands-free" devices does not take effect until July 2008.

6. Passengers over 18 not in their seatbelts - both passengers and drivers get tickets.

According to California law, any child under the age of 6 weighing less than 60 pounds must be secured in a federally approved child passenger restraint system and ride in the back seat of a vehicle. Children at least 6 years old but less than 16, and children under age 6 who weigh more than 60 pounds, must be properly secured in an appropriate child passenger restraint system or safety belt which meets federal safety standards. The driver and all other passengers must be restrained by safety belts.

If a passenger under the age of 16 is not restrained with a proper safety belt, a citation may be issued to the vehicle's driver or the child's parent or guardian (if present). If a passenger 16 or older is not restrained with a proper safety belt, the driver and/or the passenger may be cited.

7. Speeders can only drive 3 miles above the limit.

Drivers in California can be cited for speeding for driving at any rate (even just 1 MPH) over the maximum posted speed limit (and even for driving under the maximum posted speed limit, if current road conditions make that speed unsafe). Although police may not typically cite motorists until they exceed posted speed limits by a certain amount (e.g., 3-7 MPH), no state law sets a minimum amount of excess speed required for citation issuance.

8. DUI = JAIL (Stays on your driving record for 10 years!)

Being taken into custody and brought to a police station (and spending a few hours in jail) is the typical experience for a motorist who is found to have a blood alcohol content over the state limit (or who refuses to take a sobriety test). How much jail time an offender might be sentenced to after a DUI conviction depends upon a number of factors (e.g., severity of the offense, previous driving record). Courts look back 10 years for assessing increased penalties against those with one or more previous convictions for DUI offenses on their records.

The current penalty for a first DUI conviction in California is "imprisonment in the county jail for not less than 96 hours, at least 48 hours of which shall be continuous, nor more than six months, and by a fine of not less than three hundred ninety dollars ($390), nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000)." (Additional fines, temporary license suspension, community service, and mandatory DUI class attendance are also common penalties for first-time offenders.)

9. As of 07/01/07 cell phone use must be "hands free" while driving. Ticket is $285. They will be looking for this like crazy - easy money for police department.

As noted above, the law requiring that motorists who enage in phone calls while driving must use "hands-free" devices does not take effect until July 2008 and calls for "a base fine of $20 for a first offense and $50 for each subsequent offense."


http://www.snopes.com/politics/traffic/california.asp

thankyou for those clarifications.
I never understood why the DMV doesnt send out annual pamphlets or notices to its drivers...or e-mail or just something. I mean it always seems like people find out about new laws through word of mouth after their friends got pulled or cited for something. I find it lame.

no problem. those "new laws" has been going around and i just want people to be aware that its not true.

yeah same here. didnt hear about those till a friend told me about. but the fines seem to be too much for what it is. so i did a little goggling. with the cell phone law, ****, i seen cop talking the cell while driving and changing lanes without signaling..

Thanks for keeping us posted for all those in CA.  I didnt really hear of the cell phone one until now.

your welcome..

with independence day coming up and lots of people wanting to travel out of town, i just want everyone to have a heads up on whats new with the driving laws... drive safe, be safe, and have a early happy 4th of July.