Last Updated on January 11, 2022 by CCAR Staff
Q: Leslie Swor of Riverside said she thought it is illegal to have dark tinted windows, especially with regard to the driver’s front window. She said, “I see many vehicles with dark tinted windows. Is there enforcement of this practice and why are vendors allowed to tint windows so dark that you cannot see inside the vehicle?”
A: California Vehicle Code section 26708 spells out the law on this issue and says, “A person shall not drive any motor vehicle with any object or material placed, displayed, installed, affixed, or applied upon the windshield or side or rear windows.” Side windows are considered to the rear of the driver. As California Highway Patrol Officer Dan Olivos of the Inland Division noted, the law applies to the front windshield and the front windows – it’s illegal to tint them very dark as our reader pointed out.
“This is enforced very regularly,” Olivos said, with tickets handed out all the time. However, he added, “Because window tinting is reasonably affordable, people will do it again.” They either like the look of tinted windows or tint them to keep the sun and heat out of the vehicle. A ticket won’t necessarily deter someone.
As for all the vendors who perform the tint work, we understand they are supposed to tell a vehicle owner if the tint they are seeking is too dark and possibly illegal, but we can’t be sure. A warning wouldn’t likely stop a determined vehicle owner from getting the dark tint anyway and taking their chances.
Q: Billy Yarbrough, who lives in Riverside County, wrote to report that the striping on the bridge at Van Buren Boulevard over the 91 Freeway in Riverside needs to be redone as the striping has faded and it’s hard to see what lane you’re driving in. Yarbrough asked what’s going on here.
A: We apologize to our reader for the delay in getting back to him on his query from late November; it took several weeks (interrupted by all the holidays) for us to find out which agency was in charge of this issue and any necessary repair work. As it turns out, the striping on the overpasses at Van Buren and La Sierra Avenue is part of a Caltrans construction project for bridge maintenance, said Caltrans Spokeswoman Terri Kasinga. She said the striping work was supposed to be completed within the first couple weeks this month, so it may even be completed already by the time this column is published. If not, our reader should be a little patient, delays can happen but the overpass striping work is expected to get done soon.
Backing in
Finally, we’d like to share a note from reader Larry Howe of San Bernardino, who emailed On the Road in response to a question from Paul J. Gomez that we discussed a few weeks ago, regarding backing into parking spaces. Gomez, of Rancho Cucamonga, said parking lots and parking spaces were not designed to accommodate drivers backing in and those who reversed into parking spots caused delays for other drivers, posed a threat to pedestrians behind them, and could damage parking lot landscaping. We noted it’s a matter of personal preference and that most parking lots are on private property, where reversing into a parking spot is typically allowed unless a posted sign says otherwise.
Larry Howe commented, “When I worked for the phone company, all company drivers had to take driver safety courses. We were always told if possible to drive through one parking space and into another so that the front of the vehicle is facing outward, and if that is not possible, it was better to back into a parking space rather than drive into a parking space. This is because over 90 percent of all parking lot accidents are caused by backing into traffic.”
Do you commute to work in the Inland Empire? Spend a lot of time in your vehicle? Have questions about driving, freeways, toll roads or parking? If so, write or call On the Road and we’ll try to answer your questions. Please include your question or issue, name, city of residence, phone number and email address. Write ontheroad@pe.com or call 951-368-9670.
