|
Publication Date: Friday, February 11, 2005 New headlights law aims at safety
New headlights law aims at safety
(February 11, 2005) Changes in the vehicle code take effect July 1
by Dolores Fox Ciardelli
Police are hoping that a new headlights law will increase passenger safety, similar to what happened when motorists were ordered to buckle up.
A new law goes into effect July 1 in the California Vehicle Code that says headlights must be on during inclement weather, which is defined as "a condition requiring the windshield wipers to be in continuous use due to rain, mist, snow, fog or other precipitation or atmospheric moisture." In other words, if you turn on your windshield wipers, you should turn on your lights, too.
"These things are safety laws," said Lt. Bob Lyness of the Pleasanton Police Department. "We want to get people to comply for their own welfare."
Driving conditions are worse in the Sierra due to snow and in the Valley due to fog, he noted, but more and more drivers in the Tri-Valley have been turning on their headlights for safety.
"Traffic has become so heavy in the metropolitan areas that their voluntary compliance is already there," Lyness said. "This change will lead to increasing the compliance."
"It's a good safety measure, I think," he added. "My impression is the vast majority of people do this anyway."
He compared the headlights-in-inclement-weather rule to the seatbelt law. "They were not something worn by most people," he recalled, until law dictated. "It has absolutely saved lives."
He said Pleasanton police usually start off giving drivers a warning if they break a new law, to educate them.
"The next time they get 'educated' with a citation," he said. "We just want you to obey the law."
Other changes in the vehicle code going into effect in 2005 are:
¥ Fines are increased for motorists caught driving faster than 100 mph.
¥ Penalties for street racing will include a mandatory 40 hours of community service.
¥ DUI convictions will remain on a driver's record for 10 years rather than seven.
E-mail a friend a link to this story. | 
