Assembly OKs Radar Enforcement Bill

The state Assembly has approved a bill sponsored by Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks) to make it easier for traffic officials to enforce the speed limit with radar.

Passed late Thursday night by a vote of 45 to 24, the bill goes to Gov. Pete Wilson.

Before radar can be used, state law currently requires that a traffic and engineering study be conducted every five years to set speed limits. If the studies reveal that 85% or more of the drivers are speeding, it requires officials to raise the speed limit.

Councilwoman Laura Chick called this process “a glowing example of government not making sense.”

The City Council’s Public Safety Committee, which Chick chairs, voted in February to support changing the law. California is the only state in the country with such a law, said Chick’s spokeswoman, Kristin Vellandi.

The Hertzberg bill, which was passed by the state Senate, doubles the time between traffic studies to 10 years.

The change is expected to save money and result in fewer speed-limit increases on streets where drivers frequently speed.

The California Highway Patrol has found “it issues fewer citations where radar is used, because drivers slow down,” Hertzberg said in a statement. “The purpose of this bill is more safety, not more tickets.”

The legislation exempts school zones, where the speed limit is 25 mph, from the study requirement.

It also increases the training of officers who use radar.