Transportation: motorist aid services.

Existing law authorizes the establishment of a service authority for freeway emergencies in any county if the board of supervisors of the county and the city councils of a majority of the cities within the county adopt resolutions providing for the establishment of the service authority. Existing law authorizes a service authority to impose a fee of $1 per year on vehicles registered in the counties served by the service authority. Existing law generally requires moneys received by a service authority to be used for the implementation, maintenance, and operation of a motorist aid system of call boxes and authorizes moneys received by a service authority in excess of what is needed for that system to be used for additional motorist aid services, including, among other things, changeable message signs and lighting for call boxes. Existing law requires the Department of Transportation and the Department of the California Highway Patrol to review and approve plans, and amendments to plans, for implementation of a motorist aid system of call boxes. This bill would require each service authority to determine how those moneys received by it are to be used by the service authority for the implementation, maintenance, and operations of a motorist aid system, including call boxes. The bill would additionally authorize the use of those moneys for traveler information systems, Intelligent Transportation System architecture and infrastructure, and other transportation demand management services, and safety-related hazard and obstruction removal. The bill would require the Department of Transportation and the Department of the California Highway Patrol to review and approve plans, and amendments to plans, for implementation of a motorist aid system of call boxes pursuant to specified guidelines.