San Francisco will give motorists a two-month grace period before enforcing a new state law that restricts parking near crosswalks, transportation officials announced Wednesday.
The so-called daylighting law prohibits parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk to make pedestrians more visible to drivers. It takes effect Jan. 1, but the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency says it will continue issuing warnings to drivers until March 1.
“Our main goal continues to be to educate and not punish,” SFMTA spokesperson Michael Roccaforte told The Standard. “So the more people hear about it, and perhaps get a warning instead of a citation, the better.”
The SFMTA says it has given out about 60 warnings a day since it started alerting drivers last month that they cannot park near intersections, regardless of whether the curb is painted red.
SFMTA officials anticipate that about 13,775 on-street parking spots — 5% of all street parking in the city — will be affected by the law.
The regulation, established by AB 413 and signed into law in October 2023, brings California in line with more than 40 other states that prohibit parking within 20 feet of crosswalks, the SFMTA said. Daylighting, a traffic safety measure that improves visibility at intersections by restricting parking near crosswalks, has been shown to reduce pedestrian accidents in urban areas.
When enforcement begins, violations will carry a $40 fine for unmarked areas, considerably less than the $108 penalty for parking in zones marked with red curbs.
The agency plans to paint curbs red at 2,000 intersections near schools starting in early 2025, prioritizing student safety. This initiative is expected to take one year to complete with dedicated crews.
However, citywide implementation faces budget constraints. While the SFMTA has begun painting at metered parking locations, daylighting of all city intersections is projected to take three to four years, pending additional funding.
The city has approximately 442,000 public parking spaces, with 275,500 on streets and 166,500 in garages and lots, according to a parking census conducted in 2014. If those 442,000 spots were strung together, they would measure 900 miles, longer than California’s 840-mile coastline.