Traffic Tickets On The Rise In CA

You’ve may have seen the e-mail in your inbox. It’s not spam. It’s a warning about traffic fines going way up in California.

Cindy Ford got the e-mail.

“Well, I didn’t think it was a good idea,” said Ford, a Palm Desert resident.

While the amounts in the e-mail aren’t exact, Californians should plan to dig deep in their pockets paying for traffic tickets.

Some fines doubled from last year.

The fine for running a stop sign was about $146 last year. This year, it’s up to $280.

Passing a school bus with flashing red signals, $570 in 2010, now $754.

And, if you park in a spot reserved for the handicapped, it will cost you $1000, and that’s just for the citation.

“Everything is going up, but a $1000 for a parking ticket is a little outrageous,” said Ken Johnston of Palm Desert.

“That’s, that’s horrible. That really is. We’re from Texas and it’s not anything like that,” said Joan Higbee, visiting from Galveston, TX.

It’s no secret California’s budget is a mess.

As the state got deeper and deeper in debt, traffic fines kept rising.

Some people believe this is a way for the state to drive out of the budget ditch.

“I don’t think they’ve been enforced like they should have been enforced all along. The state is upside-down so it’s a good revenue for the state. It’s better than raising taxes,” said Steve Poe, of Palm Desert.

“An outrageous fine doesn’t seem fair to those people for them to carry the load of the state or the county or whoever is hurting financially. I think outrageous fines is not the way to do it,” said Johnston.

The email warns drivers the California Highway Patrol is under pressure to issue more tickets.

Officer John Quintero with the CHP said that’s not true.

He said drivers should always drive safely, no matter what they cost.