CA Senate passes bill to add speed limiter to all new cars

CALIFORNIA – The California Senate passed SB 961 sponsored by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) that requires speed warnings — called passive speed limiters — in all new cars manufactured or sold in California beginning in 2032.

According to a California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) survey, speeding was voted the biggest traffic safety problem on California roadways.

“California, like the nation as a whole, is seeing a horrifying spike in traffic deaths, with thousands of drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians dying each year on our roads,” said Wiener in a press release.

Weiner goes on to say that these deaths are preventable, and they’re occurring because of policy choices to tolerate dangerous roads.

Passive intelligent speed assistance system

SB 961 says it would require 50% of new vehicles, beginning in 2029, to be equipped with a passive intelligent speed assistance system.

The system would use a brief, one-time, visual and audio signal to alert the driver each time the speed is more than 10 miles per hour over the limit. All new cars, beginning in 2032, will be required to be equipped with the speed limiter.

The bill exempts emergency vehicles from this requirement.

Opposition

Senator Brian Dahle told AP he voted against it in part because he said sometimes people need to drive faster than the speed limit in an emergency.

“It’s just a nanny state that we’re causing here,” said Dahle.

The bill – supported by the National Transportation Safety Board, American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Automobile Association (AAA), passed the Senate 22-13. It heads next to the Assembly, where it must pass by August 31.

To read the full bill visit https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB961