Q. I just got a fix-it ticket from the California Highway Patrol on the 73 for not having a front license plate. The front of my car, a 2013 Chrysler 300 SRT, did not have a mount for a front plate. Right after getting the ticket, I saw more than five vehicles without front license plates within a two-mile stretch. I went to my car dealership and it graciously put the plate on. I wasn’t looking forward to defacing my car’s front look. Everyone knows that thousands of cars in our area are driving around with no front plates. My gripe is about the arbitrary enforcement. Any thoughts you might have about remedies would be appreciated.
– Ray Novaco, Costa Mesa
A. Doc Honk has no remedies that will soothe you, Ray.
As a youth, he drove around sans front license plate because he thought his ’71 Bug looked better without one. These days, he insists the fleet driven by the Honk clan sports front plates to decrease the chance officers will pull anyone over.
Rafael Reynoso, an officer and spokesman for the California Highway Patrol out of the San Juan Capistrano station house, which patrols part of the 73, said he might not want to slap a front plate on his vehicle, either, but he must.
“Here is California, most drivers know they have to have two plates,” he said. “It’s the driver’s responsibility. … It’s one of many violations we can stop someone for.
“It’s officer’s discretion,” he said, as to who gets cited. “Some officers look for it, some don’t. But it’s a violation.”
Under the law, the only vehicles that don’t have to carry front plates are those wearing a dealer’s license plate in the rear and motorcycles, Reynoso said.
By the way, if for some reason only one plate was mailed out, the vehicle’s owner must tell the Department of Motor Vehicles so it can ensure the vehicle gets two, said Ivette Burch, a DMV spokeswoman in Sacramento.
“The envelope that (the) DMV sends out with the plates … recommends examining the plates carefully because two plates can stick together and appear as one,” she said.
Q. Hello Mr. Honk: I look forward to your column in the newspaper where I can find your (sometimes) humorous answers. I do have a question for you. I live close to the 241 toll road and wonder: Why do we still have to see those eyesore toll booths that have remained unused for years? When I visited my sister in Tampa, Florida, the toll booths were being removed everywhere. She said the whole state had gone to transponders and no toll-collection booths were needed and they were removed. Is that possible here?
– Cheryl Liford, Mission Viejo
A. Well … yes … eventually.
In May 2014, the toll booth attendants disappeared, with tolls now paid online or with an account.
The Transportation Corridor Agencies, which operates all of Orange County’s tollways except the 91 Express Lanes, is slowly removing the toll booths.
“Toll booths on the 73, 133, 241 and 261 toll roads are being removed in phases,” said Lori Olin, the organization’s director of communications, in an email to Honk.
“Booths on multi-lane ramps have been removed,” she said. “The removal of the remaining toll booths at single-lane ramps and mainline toll points will be completed over the coming years.”
Their removal is not currently planned, and the downturn in revenues because of the coronavirus won’t help. Agency officials said priority will be given to projects that improve traffic flow, so your view won’t improve for a while, Cheryl.
To ask Honk questions, reach him at honk@ocregister.com. He only answers those that are published. To see Honk online: ocregister.com/tag/honk. Twitter: @OCRegisterHonk
Cop’s call as to whether you get cited for not having a front license plate posted first on https://anaheimsignsorangecounty.blogspot.com
No comments:
Post a Comment