Chapter 8. Neighborhood Electric Vehicle Transportation Plan For Ranch Plan Planned Community In Orange County of California Streets And Highways Code >> Division 2.5. >> Chapter 8.

It is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting this chapter, to authorize the County of Orange to establish a neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) transportation plan for the Ranch Plan Planned Community in the county. The purpose of this NEV transportation plan is to further the community's vision of creating a sustainable development that reduces gasoline demand and vehicle emissions by offering a cleaner, more economical means of local transportation within the plan area. It is the further intent of the Legislature that this NEV transportation plan be designed and developed to best serve the functional travel needs of the plan area, to have the physical safety of the NEV driver's person and property as a major planning component, and to have the capacity to accommodate NEV drivers of every legal age and range of skills.

The following definitions apply to this chapter:
  (a) "Plan area" means the Ranch Plan Planned Community project area and all streets located within the project area.
  (b) "Neighborhood electric vehicle" or "NEV" means a low-speed vehicle as defined by Section 385.5 of the Vehicle Code.
  (c) "NEV lanes" means all publicly or privately owned facilities that provide for NEV travel including roadways designated by signs or permanent markings which are shared with pedestrians, bicyclists, and other motorists in the plan area.
  (d) "Ranch Plan Planned Community" means the comprehensive land use, conservation, and development program initially approved by the Orange County Board of Supervisors on November 8, 2004, and covering the remaining 22,815 acres of the historic Rancho Mission Viejo located in southeastern Orange County.
  (e) "Transportation planning agency" means the Orange County Transportation Authority.

(a) The County of Orange may, by ordinance or resolution, adopt a NEV transportation plan for the Ranch Plan Planned Community.
  (b) The transportation plan shall have received a prior review and the comments of the transportation planning agency and any agency having traffic law enforcement responsibilities in the County of Orange.
  (c) The transportation plan may include the use of a state highway, or any crossing of the highway, subject to the approval of the Department of Transportation.

The transportation plan shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following elements:
  (a) Route selection, which includes a finding that the route will accommodate NEVs without an adverse impact upon traffic safety, and will consider, among other things, the travel needs of commuters and other users.
  (b) Transportation interfacing, which shall include, but not be limited to, coordination with other modes of transportation so that a NEV driver may employ multiple modes of transportation in reaching a destination in the plan area.
  (c) Provision for NEV related facilities including, but not limited to, special access points and NEV crossings.
  (d) Provisions for parking facilities, including, but not limited to, community commercial centers, golf courses, public areas, parks, and other destination locations.
  (e) Provisions for special paving, road markings, signage and striping for NEV travel lanes, road crossings, parking, and circulation.
  (f) Provisions for NEV electrical charging stations.
  (g) NEV lanes for the purposes of the transportation plan shall be classified as follows:
  (1) Class I NEV routes provide for a completely separate right-of-way for the use of NEVs.
  (2) Class II NEV routes provide for a separate striped lane adjacent to roadways with speed limits of 55 miles per hour or less.
  (3) Class III NEV routes provide for shared use by NEVs with conventional vehicle traffic on streets with a speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less.

If the County of Orange adopts a NEV transportation plan for the Ranch Plan Planned Community, it shall do both of the following:
  (a) Establish minimum general design criteria for the development, planning, and construction of separated NEV lanes, including, but not limited to, the design speed of the facility, the space requirements of the NEV, and roadway design criteria.
  (b) In cooperation with the department, establish uniform specifications and symbols for signs, markers, and traffic control devices to control NEV traffic; to warn of dangerous conditions, obstacles, or hazards; to designate the right-of-way as between NEVs, other vehicles, and bicycles; to state the nature and destination of the NEV lane; and to warn pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists of the presence of NEV traffic.

If the County of Orange adopts a NEV transportation plan for the Ranch Plan Planned Community, it shall also adopt all of the following as part of the plan:
  (a) NEVs eligible to use NEV lanes shall meet the safety requirements for low-speed vehicles as set forth in Section 571.500 of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
  (b) Minimum safety criteria for NEV operators, including, but not limited to, requirements relating to NEV maintenance and NEV safety. Operators shall be required to possess a valid California driver's license and to comply with the financial responsibility requirements established pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 16000) of Division 7 of the Vehicle Code.
  (c) (1) Restrictions limiting the operation of NEVs to separated NEV lanes on those roadways identified in the transportation plan, and allowing only those NEVs and golf carts that meet the safety equipment requirements specified in the plan to be operated on separated NEV lanes of approved roadways in the plan area.
  (2) Any person operating a NEV in the plan area in violation of this subdivision is guilty of an infraction punishable by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100).

(a) If the County of Orange adopts a NEV transportation plan for the Ranch Plan Planned Community pursuant to this chapter, the county shall submit a report to the Legislature on or before November 1, 2020, in consultation with the Department of Transportation, the Department of the California Highway Patrol, and local law enforcement agencies.
  (b) The report shall include all of the following:
  (1) A description of the NEV transportation plan and its elements that have been authorized up to that time.
  (2) An evaluation of the effectiveness of the NEV transportation plan, including its impact on traffic flows and safety.
  (3) A recommendation as to whether this chapter should be terminated, continued in existence and applicable solely to the Ranch Plan Planned Community, or expanded statewide.

This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2022, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2022, deletes or extends that date.