For the month of January, Santa Monica Police Department motor officers, in addition to their normal duties, will focus on individuals that make unsafe turns.
The Santa Monica Police Department’s Traffic Enforcement Unit focuses on different driving behaviors each month that are the primary causes for traffic collisions.
SMPD Lieutenant Jay Trisler said he wanted to remind drivers that when you are traveling in a lane that is designed for you to only travel straight through an intersection, you cannot make a turn from that lane.
What constitutes a violation?
The California Vehicle Code Section 22107 – Turning Movements and Required Signals reads:
No person shall turn a vehicle from a direct course or move right or left upon a roadway until such movement can be made with reasonable safety and then only after the giving of an appropriate signal in the manner provided in this chapter in the event any other vehicle may be affected by the movement.
