blogdowntown
Not currently logged in. [Login or Create an Account]

Stay Connected



 

Breaking Down the Cost of Jaywalking: Where Does Money from a $190 Ticket Go?

By David Markland and Eric Richardson
Published: Wednesday, December 15, 2010, at 01:59PM
Jaywalking Fees Breakdown blogdowntown

Where does the money from a $190 jaywalking ticket go? Most goes to the State of California, while the City of Los Angeles receives $22.54.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — Talk of jaywalking tickets swept the media in recent weeks .

Most eye-catching was the infraction's $190 fine. Many commenters accused the city of making a money grab and using the citations to raise end-of-the-year revenue.

In reality, the city has very little control over the cost of the ticket and receives less than 12 percent of the revenue collected.

The Ticket

The ticket handed out for jaywalking actually only carries with it a $25 base fine. It's when penalties and assessments are added in that the cost begins to skyrocket. These extra expenses fund a variety of state and county programs, ranging from courthouse construction to DNA identification.

Where Does the Money Go?

Of that final $190 bail total, only $22.54 goes to the City of Los Angeles according to data provided by the Los Angeles Superior Court. $28.42 goes to the County of Los Angeles, while the State of California receives $139.04.

According to Rex Olliff, a finance specialist who works under the city's Chief Administrative Officer, Miguel Santana, Los Angeles will collect approximately $13.2 million from citation revenue in this fiscal year. $4.7 million will be spent on street services, $7.5 million will go to transportation needs such as traffic signs and control devices, while the rest will go to special transportation projects.

Where the money doesn't go is LAPD. "It doesn't pay the officers salaries who issue the tickets, for example," Olliff noted.

Still, that's likely little comfort to a Downtowner hit with a hefty fine.

SHARE:

||


Conversation

Chris Loos on December 15, 2010, at 02:43PM – #1

This jaywalking thing still burns me so much. This is a city! Is it for pedestrians first, or cars first? If its about revenue, how about leaving people alone and ticketing drivers for the myriad violations they commit every day?


David Markland on December 15, 2010, at 03:31PM – #2

Chris, I think the article speaks for itself - the last thing this is about is revenue for the city.


User_32

J-M on December 15, 2010, at 08:02PM – #3

Wow! That's an interesting breakdown of the fine. Begs the question: why would officers even bother?


Guest 1

Guest on December 15, 2010, at 09:15PM – #4

How about ticketing the cars that almost run me over EACH F*CKING day on the way to the gym. . . 6th and Hill is the worst.


User_32

on December 16, 2010, at 07:55AM – #5

@Chris, yes, this is a city but with the way that Los Angeles is set up, it isn't a walking city like New York or Boston. It's too big and our public transportation sucks. Therefore, I believe that Los Angeles has to put motorists first. I think on the average, far more motorists are caught daily for their speeding than and other infractions than pedestrians are for their jaywalking.

And whether you ticket pedestrians or motorists, we're all "people". Leaving "people alone" would include both groups and there would be no revenue for the city.

@J-M, you really hit the nail on the head... Why would cops even bother writing jaywalking tickets if it doesn't benefit them. If I was a cop, I wouldn't unless I was forced to with quotas or something similar.


Guest 2

Guest on December 16, 2010, at 08:33AM – #6

Truth be told cops could give a damn if the city ever got a dime from the tickets, they are supposed to be enforcing lsws for public safety, an jailwalking can be dangerous for both the pedestrian and the vehicle traffic


Guest 3

Guest on December 16, 2010, at 10:51AM – #7

@Los Angeles SEO, The downtown area of Los Angeles is just as dense, walkable, and transit rich as the downtown areas of New York (manhattan) and Boston (including areas like the South End and Fort Point). How far someone has to go to get into downtown has nothing to do with safety on the streets. It in fact, it would be safer for everyone (motorists and pedestrians) to put more pedestrian right of ways and inact traffic calming designs on downtown streets.

The point is to move everyone safely and efficiently. Giving jaywalking tickets is silly, as always, what's more important is to answer the question of why so many people feel they have to jaywalk in the first place. Its pretty evident that in downtown there are not enough crosswalks nor pedestrian priority signals.


Chris Loos on December 16, 2010, at 11:13AM – #8

@Los Angeles SEO - Guest 3 is right. You MAYBE could make an argument that the rest of LA is dissimilar from older dense cities like NYC or Boston, but that doesn't apply to Downtown at all. My neighborhood- the Old Bank District, is quite a bit more dense than the city I moved from, Washington DC. And in DC, cops wouldn't dream of ticketing for jaywalking. They understand that the priority goes from most vulnerable to least vulnerable: Pedestrians, then cyclists, then cars. They are very aggressive about protecting pedestrians. More than once, I've seen the traffic enforcement officers that work the main intersections during rush hour SMACK the hoods of stubborn drivers that ignore their hand signals and try inching into the crosswalks while people are crossing. That's how it should be.


David Markland on December 16, 2010, at 12:44PM – #9

BTW, for all the hype this jaywalking issue has gotten, I couldn't find anyone who could show me a jaywalking ticket for this story.

LAPD Capt. Chamberlain told me he didn't quite understand why the media was focusing on jaywalking - he said they were stepping up a police presence downtown in general, and weren't specifically targeting jaywalkers.

Additionally, he said there wasn't a zero tolerance policy on jaywalking and that, as usual, ticketing was left to the officer's discretion. That said, I do believe some police were quoted as saying they personally had a zero tolerance policy - but per Chamberlain, this wan't coming from him and isn't LAPD policy.

Can anyone point to any evidence that jaywalking enforcement has gone up, especially compared to general traffic enforcement?


Guest 4

Guest on December 16, 2010, at 02:48PM – #10

I don't mine the Jaywalking ticket per say, but you get a ticket for entering the intersection after the walk signal has gone away, even if you make it across wit seconds to spare. They call it crossing against a no-walk signal. This one is ridicules, I think if your a green you go (and make it across). I fought one last year, I claimed I had no knowledge of this (I did not at the time), also there are no posted signs to this regard(5th and Spring) and that as a pedestrian I have no license, hence no test to pass on walking in the streets, thus there should be an education campaign and not a ticketing campaign.


Guest 5

Guest on December 16, 2010, at 03:13PM – #11

"Gonna get a ticket" Quote heard three separate times, at the same interecion, by three different people. All sharing the same raspy, low voice. And giving me the same knowing eye.


User_32

c j on December 16, 2010, at 04:15PM – #12

@ guest 3 (post #7): actually, i think there are plenty of crosswalks and pedestrian signals downtown. people are just impatient/in a hurry and many of our streets are two-three lane streets that are easy to jog across. i started to take notice when i learned that it is against the law to cross when the sign is flashing the red hand or "do not walk" (we don't have to many of those). so @guest 4, the "no-walk" signal is your educational campaign-- no walk means no walk =P

i try to cross at intersections but hate waiting for a set-timed signal that doesn't have any cross traffic and doesn't have a "push to cross" button. i used to just cross regardless of the light, as long as there were no cars, but now i have to watch out for the pd. i haven't seen anyone ticketed, but among my friends we have witnessed at least 4 or 5 so far. glad to see that they're still allowed to use discretion when it comes to jaywalking, though. just don't be a jerk about it.


Simon Hartigan on December 16, 2010, at 09:52PM – #13

I vote in favor of closing down many downtown streets to cars such as along Spring St in the historic core. Lots of people live along here, there are many restaurants, bars, clubs, theaters and more. Downtown is a destination, not a pit-stop. For the most part, cars don't belong in downtown cities. We can start by closing off one lane at a time and dedicate it to cyclists/skateboarding/inline skating. Maybe even take out 2 of 4 car lanes and add a lane to local shops for more out door cafe-style eating and adding room for plants and art to make our sidewalks more enjoyable and allow some serious investment in that arena.


User_32

fotoford () on December 17, 2010, at 09:49AM – #14

When I lived in San Francisco, the jaywalking thing was a nightmare. No matter the neighborhood, the density of that neighborhood, the amount of foot or vehicle traffic, people jaywalked whenever and wherever they wanted to. It was like a game of chicken at times, even when the news featured stories of pedestrians hit or killed every few weeks. It's in the best interests of everyone to have orderly streets, and for everyone to play by the rules.


User_32

bigphatcatlover on December 19, 2010, at 01:07AM – #15

Simon - I live on Spring Street, too - but until we have a complete public transportation system, I still have to drive my car. If you have your way, how will I enter or leave my home? A better idea (at least I think so) would be to change our cross walk system so that all pedestrians cross at once, including diagonally. This is done in many cities nationally and world-wide. So why (someone please explain it to me), why do our city officials refuse to consider it?

In the meantime, have a little patience and common sense and don't jaywalk. It's dangerous for everyone.


Simon Hartigan on December 19, 2010, at 05:31PM – #16

I'm not sure what you mean by complete public transportation. You live in a downtown city, short walking distance to subways stations, not to mention countless stores and eateries. I have not needed a car since 3 years ago and I was living in OC then. I moved to LA to make it even easier for myself. Having and using a car in downtown LA is more of a hassle than it is a benefit. Assuming there would be people such as yourself that would be hesitant of the idea, I mentioned in my post that we could experiment by taking out one or two lanes. This way you can still use your car but it will make it more enjoyable to non-car traffic. The more people use cars in downtown LA, the less efficient we move people around and the less enjoyable it would be. If you don't even agree with taking out a lane to make DTLA more vibrant, then I must ask why you even moved to a downtown city where you knew having a car would be annoying. Would you be in favor of a DTLA street car being built at the expense of taking out car lanes? What about a dedicated and curb protected bike lane in DTLA taking out a car lane?


Guest 6

Guest on December 20, 2010, at 02:22PM – #17

There used to be a couple of female cops that would linger around 4th and main ready to pounce on jaywalkers. That's all they did. When our Video Store was still there I used to sit on our patio and stop everyone I could from jaywalking in front of them. They would eventually move on to greener pastures after realizing they weren't gonna get anyone on MY watch. Erik from Old Bank DVD (around the corner on 4th now).


User_32

bigphatcatlover on December 20, 2010, at 08:07PM – #18

Simon ~ It's narrow minded of you to assume that everyone lives your lifestyle, or that they should. But OK, if I must explain something this elementary to you, I will. My horizons extend beyond downtown Los Angeles. For instance - if I want to go to Anaheim, or just about anywhere south of Long Beach, or the mall in Glendale, to Burbank, or West Los Angeles/Santa Monica there just isn't a time/cost efficient way to do that without driving a car, then I have to take my car out of the garage and onto Spring Street. If I'm doing stuff in DTLA, I'm happy to walk or DASH. Areas that I can get to by the Red, Gold or Blue lines, I prefer it - love it, in fact. But like many people, I do things and go places where our existing public transportation doesn't currently provide service. I do hope that this clears things up for you. If not, I suggest you simply accept the fact that many, many other people live here, too and that we need to find a way to co-exist rather than dictate our will (or rather YOUR will) upon everyone else. In the meantime - please stay out of the middle of the damn street!


Guest 7

Guest on January 04, 2011, at 12:41AM – #19

At David Marckland - Unfortunately I have proof the jaywalking tickets are a reality in DT -although I could not tell you if it has increased as I do not have that information. But I can tell you that the officer gave me the ticket while walking my dog (knowing that if you are walking a dog - you you are more likely to live in the area). He told me that I stepped into the crosswalk as the light went from Solid Walk to Blinking red - He singled me out of a bunch of pedestrians walking alongside (maybe because of the cute dog). He could have given me a warning if he were THAT concern with my safety and knowing I lived around the block after seeing my ID -but he chose to write the $190 ticket which is a painful hefty fine (specially amidst this horrible recession)


David Markland on January 04, 2011, at 08:42AM – #20

Guest 7: I wasn't doubting that people are receiving tickets, just questioning whether there has been any actual increase in the number. Sorry to hear you received one regardless. That said, the ticket doesn't actual say $190, does it?


User_32

downtown vibe on February 27, 2011, at 01:51PM – #21

So now you have something to show the next dumbass that says we aren't paying any more taxes than 10 years ago.... Every person in the state legislation needs to be held accountable for this.



Add Your Voice

In an effort to prevent spam, blogdowntown commenting requires that Javascript be enabled. Please check your browser settings and try again.

 

Search:




On Twitter

New Comments


Recommendations



blogdowntown Photo Pool

Photos of Downtown contributed by readers like you.

Downtown Blogs


Downtown Sites


Elsewhere