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Published on 11/24/1999 All articles from this issue

New law to address illegal U-turns

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By Joanne Griffith Domingue

Special to the Town Crier

U-turns are already illegal in Los Altos, per the state vehicle code. But that doesn't stop people from making them, particularly downtown, where drivers are notorious for zipping across the double yellow line to snag a parking place.

But they better watch out.

The Los Altos City Council was scheduled to consider passing a local urgency ordinance, at its Monday meeting, that would allow broader enforcement.

With a local code, the city's community service officer, who writes parking tickets, could also cite people making U-turns.

And with an urgency ordinance, it would go into effect immediately.

"The main thing is safety," said City Attorney Bob Booth. With the holidays around the corner and parking at an even greater premium than usual, the city wants this additional enforcement tool to try to curb the U-turns, officials said.

Los Altos is not unique with its downtown U-turns. "People do the same thing in Palo Alto, Sunnyvale and Mountain View, turning mid-block for a parking place," Booth said. But "it's dangerous."

It's an issue of enforcement. The community service officer is not a sworn police officer. Because of this, he is not permitted to enforce the current state law on illegal U-turns.

"But he can enforce local ordinances," Booth said. And during his walks up and down Main Street, he sees illegal U-turns all the time.

Ticketing the U-turn drivers should make Los Altos resident Charles Halleck happy. He asked the council to consider just such an ordinance at the council's Nov. 9 meeting.

"I support the concept," said Mayor Lou Becker. "The frequency has become so high, we need the ordinance for safety." When people make those U-turns, they're "flirting with an accident," Becker said.

By passing a local ordinance, "it will give other people (in addition to sworn police officers) a chance to enforce," Becker said.