Bill > AB1014

This bill amends California Vehicle Code sections related to speed limits, primarily focusing on providing more flexibility to the Department of Transportation and local authorities to lower speed limits in certain circumstances. The bill aims to improve pedestrian safety, particularly in areas with high recreational activity and vulnerable pedestrian populations, such as near state parks, national forests, and recreation areas. The key provisions include allowing the Department of Transportation to lower speed limits by up to 12.4 miles per hour from the 85th percentile of free-flowing traffic, create safety corridors, and set lower speed limits (25 or 20 miles per hour) in business activity districts with specific characteristics. The bill also requires that for the first 30 days after implementing a new lower speed limit, peace officers should only issue warning citations for speed violations of 10 miles per hour or less. The legislation is motivated by concerns about traffic collisions, particularly those involving pedestrians in areas with mixed recreational and vehicular traffic, and seeks to provide state and local agencies more discretion in setting speed limits that prioritize pedestrian safety. The bill explicitly recognizes the need to protect vulnerable pedestrian groups like children, seniors, persons with disabilities, and unhoused individuals by allowing more nuanced speed limit adjustments.

Budget and Finance, Transportation and Infrastructure

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1014