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Residents urge stronger enforcement on parked/stored vehicles, distracted driving and daylighting near crosswalks
Summary
Public commenters at the Traffic and Transportation Commission meeting urged the city to enforce parking rules for stored vehicles, expand traffic enforcement for speeding and distracted driving, and implement the new "daylighting" rule that prohibits parking within 15–20 feet of crosswalks.
Several Salinas residents used the public-comment period to press the commission and staff for more proactive enforcement of parking and traffic laws, and for safety measures near schools.
Peter Zolaia, a North Salinas resident, told the commission that neighborhoods are "blighted with vehicles stored, not parked, on our streets," and said stored vehicles obstruct sight lines and prevent street sweepers from cleaning curbs and storm drains. He asked the commission to "recommend proactive enforcement, like other communities have done," including painting curbs red near high-travel areas and actively seeking violations rather than relying solely on resident reports.
Eloise Shim urged stronger enforcement of distracted driving and asked officers to "stop people when they're on their cell phone and driving," citing frequent close calls at crosswalks. Another resident suggested exploring 15 mph zones in congested neighborhoods, restricting right turns on red at signals near schools, and expanding driver training and DMV outreach in schools.
Commissioners and staff responded with procedural detail and policy context. Staff said the city is implementing the recently passed daylighting law (noted in discussion as AB413), which prohibits parking within a set distance of marked or unmarked crosswalks and that the city will initially use warnings during an outreach period while identifying frequent violation locations for enforcement. Commissioner Hammer described AB413 as the "daylighting law" and asked staff about the applicable distances. Staff clarified that where a curb extension (bulb-out) exists the no-parking daylighting distance is 15 feet from the crosswalk; where there is no curb extension, the distance is 20 feet on the vehicle approach to the crosswalk. Staff also noted the city’s Active Transportation Plan identifies locations for future physical separation or vertical delineators on some higher-order streets.
What was not decided: The public comments asked for increased enforcement capacity and policy changes (red curbs, more traffic citations), but the commission did not adopt any formal enforcement policy changes at the meeting. Staff said complaints should be reported through the Salinas Connect service request system to notify parking enforcement.
Ending note: Commenters said they are willing to help with neighborhood outreach for petitions and enforcement efforts; commissioners encouraged residents to use official channels (Salinas Connect and neighborhood petition leads) and noted budget and staffing constraints limit enforcement coverage.
