PD Editorial: A quick fix that California can do without

Do drivers need another distraction?

The answer seems obvious to us, but state legislators looking for money to address California’s crumbling roads might be willing to gamble that more highway advertising won’t undermine public safety.

SB 1397, which cleared the state Senate Transportation Committee last week, would authorize commercial advertising on the electronic message signs used for Amber Alerts and to notify motorists of traffic hazards and chain requirements.

The bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Bob Huff, says the program could bring in as much as $200 million a year and that the money could be earmarked for road maintenance and repairs.

“This is a win-win scenario for California taxpayers,” the San Dimas Republican said in a written statement. “It won’t cost taxpayers a dime.”

Huff says a private company would be selected to replace the state’s electronic signs with high-definition screens, that Caltrans would control the type and location of any advertising, and priority would be given to emergency messages.

California’s streets and highways are in desperate need of help. Transportation officials have identified $57 billion in needed repairs to state roads in the coming decade, with another $78 billion needed to repair local roads.

Where will the money come from? Taxes on gasoline and diesel traditionally have paid for highway construction and maintenance. But the state’s transportation fund is over-tapped, new vehicles use less fuel, more people are buying hybrids and electric cars that use little or no fuel, and state lawmakers haven’t mustered the two-thirds majority required to raise fuel taxes.

Huff, who opposes higher fuel taxes, is looking for alternative funding.

For that, he deserves some credit. But he’s headed down a dangerous road.

In 2013, according to the most recent data posted on the federal government’s www.distraction.gov website, 3,179 people were killed, and 431,000 were injured, in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. About 1 in 10 traffic fatalities involved distracted drivers.

Young drivers are especially susceptible to distractions. Ten percent of all drivers 15 to 19 years old involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Drivers already have too many things competing for their attention - passengers, cell phone conversations, text messages, eating, grooming, radios, CD players, navigation systems, roadside billboards. Overhead advertising would be, well, overkill.

Huff’s bill isn’t the first attempt to expand the use of the 832 electronic signs on California highways. For several years, the state has posted anodyne messages such as “Don’t drink and drive” and “Buckle your seatbelt.” Encouragement to save water appeared during the drought. The state is exploring messages related to voting, and Caltrans is a year overdue on a report exploring the potential for selling advertising on electronic signs.

Common sense says it’s a bad idea. If that’s not enough, there is one big roadblock. Federal law doesn’t permit advertising on the right-of-way, and the penalty includes a loss of 10 percent of the state’s federal highway money. For California, that would be about $350 million.

Huff’s bill is contingent on securing a waiver from the federal government. If his bill passes, and the governor signs it into law, federal highway officials should put up a stop sign. It might save somebody’s life.