Driving Laws
Driving is a privilege, protect your privilege and stay informed of all driving regulations
Restrictions
First twelve months: No driving with other teens
(under age of 20) and no driving between the hours of 11PM and 5AM,
unless accompanied by a licensed driver over 25 years of age.
Note: These restrictions apply as secondary
offenses only. The student must be stopped for some other violation
(seat belt, failure to stop, limit lines, reckless driving, unsafe
vehicle; for those students who think this is unlikely. ..remember,
a sticker in the wind shield, a dim tail-light, failure to signal
100 feet in advance, a passenger lacking a seat belt, limit-line
violations. . . a police officer will have little difficulty
finding a valid reason to pull over a car.)
Exemptions
For transporting immediate family members ONLY if vehicle use is
for medical, family, school or employment. (Contact us if you need
a permission slip for this; the exemption can not be used for
unnecessary excursions.)
Teenage Laws
Cancellation: Parents (or legal guardians) have
the right to cancel the license at any time during the provisional
license. Yep - any reason. You must be nice to Mom and Dad!
Truancy: Students will receive a fine ($150-500
per offense), administered through the traffic courts, if convicted
of truancy and/or loitering (unexcused absences); on third
conviction, provisional license is suspended for one year.
(One-year delay in obtaining license any time after the 13th
birthday).
Destruction of private/public property: Conviction
for tagging or destroying any property carries a one-year
suspension on any license. (One year delay in obtaining license any
time after the 13th birthday).
Driving under the influence of .01% BAC: One year
suspension 1/10,000 alcohol / blood = less than one drink of
alcohol). This results in a one-year suspension as well as
increased insurance premiums. This can be an incredibly small
amount of alcohol. We don't care WHY you drank it - the fact that
you did, and then got behind the wheel of a car is all we care
about. DON'T!
Driving Laws for All
Drivers
School Buses: Motorists on both sides of the
street must stop (unless motorist is on the side of median)
whenever the red lights of a school bus are flashing, even if the
bus driver isn't escorting children across the street (public or
private). Violators can be fined up to $1,000. Drivers who have
three convictions in seven years will lose their licenses. We are
now putting cameras in school buses! STOP when the lights are
flashing, and STAY STOPPED until they stop!
Red Light Violations: Increased the base fine for
running a red light to $100-175, bringing the total cost of the
violation to $270-381. Subsequent offenses would be subject to the
same fine.
Controlled Substances: DMV will suspend or delay
the driver's license of any person for six months upon conviction
of any controlled substance offense. Each successive offense is to
be followed by an additional six-month suspension.
Recent
Laws
Disabled Parking: Authorizes the DMV to conduct an
annual random audit of applications submitted and processed by the
department to verify the authenticity of the certificates and
information. Fines of up to $2500 for each case of forged,
counterfeit or falsified disabled person placards.
Road Rage: The court may order the suspension of
the driving privilege of any operator of a motor vehicle who
commits an assault, commonly referred to as 'road rage'. The court
may, in lieu of or in addition to the suspension, order a person
convicted under this section to complete a court-approve
danger-management course.
HOV Lanes on San Bernardino Freeway: Increases the
minimum occupancy requirement to three persons during commute hours
and two persons at all other times.
Blocking a Crosswalk: Provides that no person may
stop a vehicle unnecessarily in a manner that causes the vehicle to
block a marked or unmarked crosswalk or sidewalk. Imposes a new
fine of $100 ($271 fine/penalty) for violating a specified
provision that prohibits a driver from overtaking and passing a
vehicle that has stopped at a marked or unmarked cross walk to
permit a pedestrian to cross the roadway.
Parking Meters: A county sealer shall immediately
close an inaccurate meter and notify its owner. Until the meter is
either fixed or replaced, a motorist may park there free of
charge.
New DUI Penalty: Court may require a person who is
convicted of a first DUI offence to install an ignition interlock
(a tube connected to the engine, that measures blood alcohol
content) device to any vehicle that the person owns or operates.
Also requires the device when a person refuses to take the
blood/breath test.
Trunking: This law (AB 1850) makes it unlawful for
a person to knowingly drive a motor vehicle while another person is
riding in the trunk; riding in the trunk is also illegal.The driver
receives a fine and one point on his or her driving record; the
person riding in the trunk also receives a fine.
Lights ON!: If you are driving with your
windshield wipers on due to rain, you must also have your low-beam
headlights on. This is our legislature's attempt at legislating
common sense. We really should not have to be told to do this. .
.Truly, low beam headlights are ALWAYS appropriate and their
consistent use makes you easier to see. (And when you think about
it, people often say after a car accident, "I never saw him, I
swear, he came out of nowhere! "Put on your lights, and the other
guy will see you!
Cell Phones: Drivers under 18 must not use a cell
phone while driving. If a driver over 18 must use a cell phone
while driving, it cannot be hand-held. The first is a secondary
offence, the second is a primary offence. This means that you CAN
be pulled over simply because you are holding a cell phone to your
ear, no matter what your age.
Plate Shields: Spraying a substance onto your
license plate to obscure the identification of your car is illegal.
(People do this because they think that the red-light, toll and
speed cameras will not be able to identify the car. Sometimes the
spray works, sometimes the spray doesn't work - but it is now
illegal.) Glass or plastic in front of a license plate (or placing
it behind the windshield) is also illegal.
Do you have any questions? Please feel free to Contact Us.