Question: My daughter recently received her driver's license, and we are wondering: Since she can't drive alone with her friends for the first year, if I go along with her and her friend, do I have to sit in the front seat, or can we allow her friend to sit in the front seat with her and have me sit in the back? – Nicole Burns
Answer: That's an interesting mental picture you're painting for me, Nicole, but if you want to sit in the back seat while your daughter and her friend are in the front, it's perfectly legal. If she did not have her license yet and was driving with just her permit, the licensed driver 25 or older would have to be in the front seat – within arm's reach of the steering wheel.
Question: A full-page flier was printed in our mobile home park's newsletter, stating that we (the residents) would be held responsible and given notice of a violation if our guests did not stop at the posted stop signs in the park. The flier justified the management's right to do this by stating, ''By your guests ignoring these stop signs, it is the same as if the resident violates this rule.'' Is this legal? – Anonymous, in fear of retaliation by park management
Answer: Thanks for sending along a copy of the flier. It was indeed harsh. I guess building goodwill with the tenants is low on park management's priority list. I would love to quote a traffic law that would make park management wrong, but the answer to this question lies in your lease, not within the vehicle code book. If your lease says you can be sanctioned if your guests break the rules and regulations of the park, I'm afraid that would include the driving rules of the park, as well.
Question: When the new 210 Freeway was finished from La Verne to Fontana, the highway was designated as a California State Highway (green sign). What is the reason it has not been designated as Interstate 210 (blue shield sign)? – Dan Centurioni, Alta Loma
Answer: You are one observant guy, Dan. You are correct, the 210 is only an interstate (I-210) for about 50 miles, from the I-5 near Tunnel Station to Pomona.
The only remaining incomplete section of the freeway lies between Interstate 15 and Interstate 215, and that section should be completed by 2007. Upon completion of the freeway, California 210 will be submitted for inclusion in the Interstate Highway System as an extension of Interstate 210.
Question: While traveling in other countries, I have seen interesting car models not available in the U.S. Is it possible to buy these models new or used and legally bring them into the U.S.? – Jerry Poupard
Answer: The good news is that, yes, it is possible. The bad news is that the extra costs you would incur to make these vehicles legal to drive in the U.S. would probably make you lose interest in the proposition pretty quickly. The imported vehicles we buy in the U.S. have been specifically designed to meet exacting U.S. safety, bumper and air pollution-control standards. It is highly unlikely that a vehicle bought abroad would meet those standards without extreme modifications. When you add to that the fees for shipping and documentation, along with hefty duties and federal taxes, you might just want to run down to your local import car dealer and take a second look at what is readily available on the showroom floor.
Michelle Groh-Gordy is the owner of InterActive! Traffic School Online atwww.trafficinteractive.com , and writes a syndicated weekly column on driving for the publications of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group.
