Here’s How You Can Report Vehicles That Have Expired Licenses

Dear Street Smart:

The Air Quality Management District has a hot line to report smoking vehicles, 1-800-CUT-SMOG. Why doesn’t the DMV have a hot line to report vehicles driving around with expired plates? I see four to six of these every day.

If I have to pay good money to register my vehicle, why shouldn’t everyone?

Ray Mueller, Tustin

The Department of Motor Vehicles used to have a toll-free number people could call to report expired license plate tags, but because it was used so infrequently, the service was discontinued, said Bill Madison, a DMV spokesman in Sacramento.

Now people can call (916) 657-6718, Madison said. This is the number for the DMV’s registration and compliance unit.

Written reports can also be mailed to the Department of Motor Vehicles, Registration and Compliance Unit, P.O. Box 942869, Sacramento, Calif., 94269-0001. Please write in the lower left-hand corner of the envelope: Unit 86A.

When filing a verbal or written report, include the make and model of the car and the license plate number.

Dear Street Smart:

Recently, in Garden Grove, the left-turn signal for the northbound side of Brookhurst Street onto Trask Avenue (the route to get to the westbound Garden Grove Freeway) was converted from a signal on a pole to an overhead signal. I believe that the timing for the lights at that intersection was changed at that time.

Ever since that day, the traffic for that left-turn lane has been backing up so bad that it blocks the lane going straight. Before the change, just about all of the cars waiting could make it through the light. Now, only about five cars make it through.

On many occasions, I have waited through four cycles of signals before it was my turn to go. This happens even on weekends!

It is also a dangerous situation because the cars that are trying to go straight get caught behind the mess trying to turn left and they swing over at the last minute, causing other drivers to swerve or stomp on their brakes.

My only other option is to go straight through the intersection and make an illegal U-turn to avoid the mess. I’m sure I speak for many other commuters when I say, “Please help us!”

Cheryl Richardson, Cypress

I’m afraid Paul Grimm, traffic engineer for Garden Grove, doesn’t have the answer you want. At least in part.

“We modified the signal, but we didn’t change any timing in connection with that modification,” Grimm said. “That turn has a maximum green time of 30 seconds and it has never been changed.”

Increased traffic to the Garden Grove Freeway is responsible for delays, he said.

Allowing more time for left turns would worsen traffic backups elsewhere at the intersection, Grimm said.

“We try to balance it the best we can, but during certain peak periods, we realize the intersection has more (traffic) capacity than it can handle,” Grimm said.

On the strength of your letter, Grimm said his department will monitor the intersection to see if modifications should be made.

Dear Street Smart:

Recently, I was driving south on the Costa Mesa Freeway and saw a CHP officer come up right behind another car in the car-pool lane. When the traffic opened up enough for the CHP officer to get around, he passed the driver.

This got me wondering how one should react to such a situation, especially if the cop had had his lights and/or siren going. Should that motorist have immediately moved over, risking an expensive car-pool violation for crossing the double yellow line, or should he have waited for an opening in the lane and then moved over, risking a probably equally expensive fine for not yielding to an emergency vehicle?

Mark Temple, Huntington Beach

The basic rule is, ‘Red light, move right.’ If an enforcement vehicle is behind you and its lights are flashing, move to the right as carefully as possible to avoid creating risk for other drivers, said Officer Sam Haynes, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol in Sacramento.

If the enforcement vehicle does not have flashing lights or siren, there is no intrinsic reason for yielding as long as you are obeying the law and following the rules of the road, Haynes said.

If you fail to move out of the way for a police car with flashing lights, you risk a fine ranging from $100 to $270, Haynes said.