California Traffic Safety Legislation 2026: SAFE's Wins, Losses, and New Laws
A Lot of Important Wins and a Few Tough Losses
By Damian Kevitt, Kristen Weiss, and Kristan Nunez
California's 2026 legislative session brought significant progress for traffic safety, with new laws addressing dangerous driving, e-bike safety, pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and public transportation.
SAFE's Policy and Legislation team worked on 26 bills this session, achieving 20 legislative wins, including five co-sponsored bills signed into law. These victories will help strengthen protections for people walking, biking, and driving across California.
Not every effort succeeded. Several important bills aimed at preventing dangerous driving failed to advance, highlighting the work still ahead.
Below is a breakdown of SAFE's 2026 legislative results, the bills that passed, and the proposals that fell short.
2026 Legislation by the Numbers
Total number of bills worked on (sponsored, supported, or opposed): 26
Total number of wins! 20 (a 77% win ratio)
Co-sponsored bills signed: 5
Priority bills signed: 10
Opposed bills successfully killed: 5
Useful Terminology
Assembly Bill (AB):
These bills originate in the California State Assembly and are sent to the California State Senate for approval before being signed by the Governor, becoming law.
Senate Bill (SB):
These bills originate in the California State Senate and are sent to the California State Assembly for approval before being signed by the Governor, becoming law.
Appropriations Committee:
Both the State Senate and Assembly have appropriations committees; their job is to review bills that would have a significant fiscal impact on the state.
2026 CA Traffic Safety Bills Signed Into Law
During California's 2026 legislative session, 15 traffic safety bills supported by SAFE were signed into law, including five that SAFE co-sponsored. These new laws address critical issues such as impaired and reckless driving, e-bike safety, speed enforcement, pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and public transportation. Below is a breakdown of the legislation and what each bill means for California's roads.
SB 1167
Vehicles: electric bicycles.
SB 1167, a bill that SAFE co-sponsored with People for Bikes, CalBike, and Streets For All and authored by Senator Blakespear, clarifies the legal definition of electric bicycles and ensures that higher-powered two-wheeled vehicles, known as e-motos, are not marketed or sold as e-bikes. The bill ensures e-motos are properly classified as motor-driven cycles or mopeds, depending on their power, and requires registration, licenses, and insurance for riding on city roads.
AB 1569
Pupil safety: electric bicycle parking: safety program.
AB 1569, a bill that SAFE sponsored and that Assemblymember Davies and Chen authored, would require the State Department of Education and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) to develop, on or before March 1, 2028, a statewide electric bicycle safety and training program for students in grades 7 to 12.
AB 1588
Vehicles: Sideshow Accountability and Community Safety Act.
AB 1588, a bill SAFE co-sponsored with the Mayor of San Francisco and Assemblymember Stefani authored, would increase penalties for participating in sideshows and expand the definition of a sideshow to include vehicles other than cars. The bill also increases sanctions for engaging in, abetting, or aiding sideshows.
AB 1685
Driving privilege: points.
AB 1685, a bill sponsored and authored by Assemblymember Lackey and Petrie-Norris, would increase California’s driving-record point system from two points to three for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and with gross negligence. This bill increases the consequences for reckless and/or impaired driving by adding more points to offenders' driving records.
AB 1687
Driver’s licenses: revocation.
AB 1687, a bill that SAFE sponsored and authored by Assemblymember Lackey, aims to strengthen California’s response to repeat impaired driving offenses by authorizing the immediate removal of an individual’s license if they have three or more DUI-related offenses within ten years. Additionally, AB 1687 will increase the current reinstatement period from three to eight years unless the offender agrees to install an ignition interlock device (breathalyzer) in their vehicle.
SB 907
Driving under the influence and other driving offenses: comprehensive reform.
Supported by SAFE, SB 907 would increase penalties for drivers who leave the scene of an injury-causing crash, making it either a misdemeanor or a felony. Furthermore, if a driver leaves the scene of a crash that causes death or serious injury, the bill would increase the felony penalty if the driver has one of those qualifying convictions (DUI, reckless driving, gross vehicular manslaughter violation) within the previous 10 years.
SB 922
Vehicles: local agency charges: use of streets or highways
Supported by SAFE, SB 922 would allow local governments to charge public service providers for the cost of repairing and maintaining the roads those services use.
SB 1279
City of Long Beach Pacific Coast Highway speed safety system pilot program.
Supported by SAFE, SB 1279 would expand the speed camera pilot program established in AB 645 to include Long Beach's portion of the Pacific Coast Highway until January 1st, 2032, to minimize traffic violence and reckless driving.
AB 1837
Video imaging of parking violations.
Supported by SAFE, AB 1837 would extend the authorization to use video imaging to enforce parking and stopping violations until January 1, 2034.
AB 1976
Streets and highways: pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
Supported by SAFE, AB 1976 would prohibit cities and counties from delaying or canceling pedestrian and bicycle safety projects once the project has passed 90% design and once construction begins or a contract is awarded; the city or county cannot cancel the project unless a specific finding is made at a public meeting. Furthermore, if a city or county establishes a process for residents to submit a petition to request the installation of a traffic-calming measure, the bill would prohibit the city or county from requiring the petition to contain signatures of more than a majority of the total number of persons whose residences are located within 1,000 feet of the proposed traffic-calming measure.
AB 2059
California Environmental Quality Act: transportation impacts: vehicle miles traveled: mitigation
Supported by SAFE, AB 2059 would establish special VMT (vehicle-miles-traveled) rules for certain transportation projects in non-metropolitan counties, making it easier for qualifying projects to demonstrate, under CEQA, that they have less-than-significant transportation impacts and do not create a substantial increase in vehicle travel.
AB 2168
Active Transportation Program: guidelines.
Supported by SAFE, AB 2168 would expand California’s Active Transportation Program to include and support projects that create safe routes to transit, encourage access to transit facilities and school bus stops by biking and walking, and expand access to transit in underserved or rural areas.
AB 2361
Insurance: Personal Vehicle Sharing
Supported by SAFE, AB 2361 would give personal vehicle-sharing programs more flexibility in determining their liability; however, these programs would still have to provide minimum insurance protections for people injured or whose property is damaged.
AB 2484
San Diego Metropolitan Transit System: transactions and use tax: voter initiatives
Supported by SAFE, AB 2484, which applies to the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, would allow voters to approve a sales tax of up to 0.5% to fund public transportation. This bill would let San Diego residents put the tax increase on the ballot.
AB 1546
Vehicles: driving under the influence.
Supported by SAFE, AB 1546 would increase penalties for repeat DUI offenses by making a DUI conviction occurring within 10 years of two separate prior DUI violations a wobbler, punishable as either a misdemeanor or felony, and imprisonment in the county jail for not less than 120 days nor more than one year and by a fine, or as specified, increasing the imprisonment from up to one year in county jail to 16 months, two years, or three years, along with a fine. The bill would similarly make a DUI conviction occurring within 10 years of three separate prior DUI violations a wobbler, while a DUI committed within 10 years of four or more separate prior DUI violations would be punishable as a felony by imprisonment in the county jail for 16 months, two years, or three years, along with a fine.
2026 CA Traffic Safety Bills That Did Not Pass
Not every traffic safety proposal became law during California's 2026 legislative session. Five bills supported by SAFE, including three co-sponsored bills, failed to advance beyond the Legislature's Appropriations Committees, while AB 2502 was vetoed by the Governor. These proposals addressed issues including reckless driving penalties, DUI prevention, safer driving incentives, and the use of driver-assistance technology. Although these measures did not become law, they highlight important traffic safety challenges that still need legislative attention.
SB 1156
Vehicles: driving under the influence.
SB 1156, a bill that SAFE sponsored, would have required the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to include information about DUI penalties and consequences on vehicle registration materials and digital registration platforms.
SB 1198
Vehicles: reckless driving: impoundment.
SB 1198, another bill that SAFE co-sponsored, would have increased the suspension period for drivers convicted of reckless driving to up to 60 days. If a driver commits a reckless driving violation twice within 10 years, the suspension increases to 30 days to 6 months. The bill would also require the court to suspend driving privileges for 3 to 12 months for third and subsequent reckless driving violations.
AB 311
Consumer Driving Data Protection Act of 2026
AB 311, a bill that SAFE co-sponsored and worked closely with the Office of Tina McKinnor on, would have incentivized safer driving habits through a voluntary program in which insurance companies can monitor driving behaviors and provide feedback on how to drive more safely, in exchange for significant discounts on car insurance.
AB 1662
Driving record: points: misdemeanor diversion.
AB 1662, a bill that SAFE supported, would have required courts to notify the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) when a person receives diversion for certain offenses that would normally be reported to the DMV if the person had been convicted. Instead of sending a conviction record, the court would direct the prosecutor to ensure the DMV is notified of the arrest or incident.
SB 953
Driving record: points: vehicular manslaughter.
SB 953, another bill SAFE supported, would have imposed 2 violation points on a driver’s record for a misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter violation that was dismissed by a judge upon the completion of diversion.
AB 2502
Vehicles: driving under the influence: driving automation.
AB 2502 would state that, for the purposes of a DUI violation, “drive” includes intentionally moving a vehicle while its driver-assistance features are turned on (i.e., having the driving-assistance feature in a Tesla turned on).
Thank you!
This is all possible thanks to the support from our partner organizations, donors, and sponsors, and to the many people who show up for our Finish The Ride and Run events. Also, much of this couldn’t be done without the many volunteers and support from partner organizations across the State of CA and the US — far too many to count — and we are grateful for all of you.
More Work to Go, Stay Up to Date
Legislative action alone is not sufficient. Public engagement and awareness remain critical to policymaking, and we encourage individuals, advocates, and community stakeholders to stay informed, communicate with their elected officials, and participate in ongoing policy discussions.
It still often takes work at the local level to ensure these laws are implemented correctly, but that’s another area of SAFE and a different team led by Aaron Garcia, SAFE’s Director of LA County Advocacy.
To stay updated on legislation, policy developments, and future bill activity, we also encourage readers to sign up for our newsletter for additional updates and information throughout the legislative session or reach out to Kristian Nunez, SAFE’s Policy and Legislative Coordinator (policy@streetsareforeveryone.org).