IMPORTANT NEW TRAFFIC LAWS FOR 2008...AND BEYOND!
PHREEWAY PHONING (California Vehicle Code Section 23123)
We know you love your mobile phone. You call your friends, family, and business associates from everywhere: at the store, at the beach, in the shower. Okay...maybe not the shower? Well, starting on July 1, 2008, if you talk on your phone while you're driving, you'll need to use a hands-free listening and speaking system. Drivers cited will be subject to a fine of $20 (at least $70 with fees and penalties) for a first offense and $50 (at least $175 with fees and penalties) for subsequent offenses. Push to talk (PTT) systems, such as those from Nextel, will be exempt from the hands-free edict until July 1, 2011.
TEEN MOBILE PHONE USE (California Vehicle Code Section 23124)
Who loves their mobile phones even more than adults? Teens!!! Yet, teen drivers are faced with an even more restrictive mobile phone law. Effective July 1, 2008, drivers under the age of 18 are prohibited from using any mobile messaging device (including wireless phones, pagers, texting devices, laptops, etc.) — even if it is equipped with a hands-free device. Drivers cited will be subject to a fine of $20 (at least $70 with fees and penalties) for a first offense and $50 (at least $175 with fees and penalties) for subsequent offenses.
For a video clip from CNN on dangerous driving behaviors, click here.
WHAT A DRAG! (California Vehicle Code Section 23109.2)
Street racing can be a gas, but injuring or killing someone during the course of a race is a real drag. Effective January 1, 2008, this statute allows law enforcement officers to impound a vehicle for 30 days when a person is arrested for street racing, exhibition of speed, or reckless driving. Vehicles impounded under this law can be claimed by their registered owners if the owner was neither the driver nor a passenger and was unaware that the vehicle was being used in a forbidden manner.
Having your car impounded could be the least of its worries if you engage in a speed contest. To read a news article about street racers being crushed by law enforcement, click here.
NO SMOKING! (California Vehicle Code Section 12814.6)
As an adult, you can choose to suck on that stinky, smelly, choking tar stick. Your underage passengers, however, don't have the luxury of choice. This statute is intended to protect children riding in vehicles from the dangers second-hand smoke. Effective January 1, 2008, the law makes it an infraction — punishable by a fine of up to $100 — to smoke a cigar, cigarette, or pipe in a vehicle containing a minor, whether the vehicle is in motion or not.
DON'T HAZE ME, BRO! (California Vehicle Code Section 5201, 5201.1)
This law makes it illegal to sell or use a product that obscures or impairs the reading or recognition of a vehicle license plate by an electronic device employed by law enforcement or toll authorities. The fine for using a product to obscure a vehicle license plate is approximately $146; the fine for selling such a product is $250 (approximately $900 with fees and penalties) per item sold.
SLOW FOR SCHOOLS! (California Vehicle Code Section 22358.4)
Release your driving aggression with Grand Theft Auto. When it comes to school zones...SLOW DOWN! This amendment to the vehicle code allows local jurisdictions to establish a speed zone of 15 mph up to 500 feet around schools, if a local ordinance is adopted to authorize it. (This is a decrease from the prima facie speed limit of 25 mph in school zones.)
TRAFFIC SCHOOL LIMITATIONS (Penal Code Section 1203.4; California Vehicle Code Sections 40501, 41501, and 42005)
This statute prohibits the courts from dismissing two-point violations through the completion of a traffic violator school or safe driving program. Two-point violations include drunk driving, hit-and-run collisions, speed contests, evading a law enforcement officer, and vehicular manslaughter. While we think drivers who commit a two-point violation could benefit from one of our traffic safety courses, we do agree that those drivers' records should reflect their extreme driving habits.
URBAN LEGEND DISPROVED
During the past year, we became aware of a cautionary tale circulating on the Internet. The anecdote tells of a car that hydroplanes with its cruise control engaged and "accelerates to a high rate of speed and takes off like an airplane." While a vehicle would never "take off like an airplane" as a result of hydroplaning, the warning inherent in the story is worth heeding. The only way to stop wheel spin and maintain control — in any road condition — is to immediately reduce power. However, an active cruise control will continue to apply power and keep the wheels spinning. The moral of the story: Use your cruise control judiciously — especially in wet conditions.
In a related story, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports that car manufacturers are producing much safer vehicles, with the number of new vehicles earning the highest safety rating nearly tripling this year. Much of the increase was credited to the wider adoption of electronic stability control systems, which significantly improve control in adverse driving conditions. You can also check out crash test ratings from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration at www.safercar.gov. The two agencies perform different types of tests, so it doesn't hurt to check both websites!
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