Calls From Phones Beside Freeways Answered by CHP

Dear Street Smart:

I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve never had to use a roadside call box. However, I’ve always wondered what to expect if I should need to use one.

For example, who answers? Who can I call? If I call a relative, who pays for the call? What is the general procedure?

E.F. Burns

La Habra

When you pick up the receiver of a call box--located at approximately quarter-mile intervals along the county’s freeways and toll roads--you are automatically connected to a dispatcher at the California Highway Patrol’s communications center in Santa Ana. That dispatcher’s job is to assess your situation and connect you with someone who can help, according to John Standiford, a spokesman for the Orange County Transportation Authority, which funds the call boxes.

The primary purpose of the boxes, Standiford said, is to assist motorists stranded due to breakdowns. In most cases, that means putting you in touch with a garage or towing company that can pull your disabled car off the freeway, with the county’s freeway service patrol, which can sometimes offer mechanical assistance on the spot, or with a law enforcement agency. It can also mean patching you through to your employer if you are driving a company car, or to a friend or relative.

The boxes are not there so you can tell someone you’re going to be late or ask for directions.

There is no charge to the motorist for calls made from call boxes, which are solar powered. According to Standiford, the 1,100 boxes countywide handle an average of 300 calls a day.

Dear Street Smart:

I am writing in reference to a traffic citation I received this month. The citation was for making a right turn from a middle lane. However, I had changed into the far right lane before I turned. . . .

I am certain of these facts because I had been aware of the police officer for several minutes. . . . The officer was several car distances in front of me when he said he saw me make the turn. His vision was blocked by traffic between us. He was mistaken in thinking I made an illegal turn. I explained my actions to the officer, but he was not convinced.

In the 11 years I have been driving, I have not had any traffic violations, nor have I ever been pulled over. I am a very good driver and have great respect for the law. However, I oppose paying for a violation I did not commit. I am very willing to accept responsibility when I am at fault, but this was not the case.

What are the steps I can take to resolve this situation (other than appearing in court)? Because of my job, it is difficult for me to schedule a court appearance. I am willing to exhaust every option rather than pay for this fine.

Justine Nguyen

Placentia

You can plead not guilty and ask for a “trial by declaration.” That means that you will have to submit a written statement by mail stating the reasons you feel you are not responsible and supplying any evidence you have supporting your claim. The officer who issued your citation will also submit such a statement and a judge will ultimately decide which account is the most credible.

In order to do this, you must first post a specified amount of bail. If you are found not guilty, the money will be refunded; if, on the other hand, you lose the case it will be applied toward whatever fines and penalties are assessed.

You will be notified of the judge’s decision by mail, after which you will have 30 days to appeal.

You should probably be warned, however, that such cases are difficult to win. “The odds of winning are low,” said Sam Eagle, a Fountain Valley attorney who specializes in personal injury cases related to automobiles and serves as a judge pro tem in the traffic division of Municipal Court in Westminster.

All things being equal, he said, “most of the traffic judges are going to side with the police. The police have the powers of observation and the training to spot an infraction and they are most likely to get the nod as far as credibility goes. If it’s just your word against the police, nine times out of 10 the judge will go with the cop.”

One option for you to consider, Eagle suggests, is going to traffic school. This would involve paying the fine and admitting guilt, but you could schedule the classes during nonworking hours, and completing the course would prevent the violation from appearing on your permanent driving record.

If you decide to contest your citation before a judge, either in person or by mail, there are ways to bolster your case. Include any evidence you can, especially statements by eyewitnesses. And if possible, Eagle suggests, enlist the aid of an attorney experienced in traffic law.

For more information, call the court at (714) 834-3575.

Dear Street Smart:

A dangerous situation arises when one parks in a mall or similar parking lot. With cars, trucks or vans parked on each side of your car, it is impossible to see oncoming vehicles that should pass behind you until you have backed out to where you can see both ways through the side windows in the doors.

In my pickup, this means that I have backed up about 10 feet into the traffic lane. Although I back up very slowly, I must depend upon the other drivers to pass safely behind me or stop and wait for me to back all the way out and drive away.

The state has solved this type of problem by requiring trucks and working vehicles to be equipped with loud horns that automatically sound a warning whenever the vehicle is backing up.

A similar solution is possible for automobiles--namely, make the stop lights go into a flashing mode whenever the vehicle is in reverse. This could be accomplished very cheaply by adding a switch which would be actuated by the gear-shift lever when it is in the reverse position and one or two wires from this switch to the emergency switch. Since both are located on the steering wheel column, the cost would be negligible.

Kenneth R. Jackson

Huntington Beach

You may be right about the cost, but representatives of two major organizations involved in automobile engineering and safety issues say that they don’t see many advantages in your idea.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad idea,” said David Schwartz, a spokesman for the Society of Automotive Engineers in Warrendale, Pa., “but we already have white back-up lights in cars. The reason that they’re white is that they are more visible. I don’t really see the necessity of flashing back-up lights.”

Amy Leszczynski, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Council for Automotive Research in Detroit, agrees. “Basically,” she said, “if you were to maintain proper speed in a parking lot you could stop in plenty of time to avoid hitting anyone backing out. It’s up to the person driving through the parking lot to anticipate people backing out and up to the person backing out to anticipate people driving through the parking lot. Blinking lights wouldn’t do a whole lot to decrease accidents.”

Street Smart appears Mondays in The Times Orange County Edition. Readers are invited to submit comments and questions about traffic, commuting and what makes it difficult to get around in Orange County. Include simple sketches if helpful. Letters may be published in upcoming columns. Please write to David Haldane, c/o Street Smart, The Times Orange County Edition, P.O. Box 2008, Costa Mesa, CA 92626, send faxes to (714) 966-7711 or e-mail him at David.Haldane@la times.com. Include your full name, address and day and evening phone numbers. Letters may be edited, and no anonymous letters will be accepted.