Vehicle Code 21460 VC - Crossing Double Parallel Lines

If you opened the mail recently only to discover that you received a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation, you’ll want to get up to speed on what exactly it means.  Below, we’ve covered all of the most important details that you’ll want to know, including:

• What Vehicle Code 21460 VC is
• What it means to have violated it
• What you can do about the violation
• Other possible Vehicle Code violation connections
• How to avoid being cited with a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation

What is Vehicle Code 21460 VC?

This is one of those codes that are complex in language, but simple in operation.  Let’s get the language out of the way by starting with the California legislature right away.  It reads: “If double parallel solid yellow lines are in place, a person driving a vehicle shall not drive to the left of the lines, except as permitted in this section.

(b) If double parallel solid white lines are in place, a person driving a vehicle shall not cross any part of those double solid white lines, except as permitted in this section or Section 21655.8.

(c) If the double parallel lines, one of which is broken, are in place, a person driving a vehicle shall not drive to the left of the lines, except as follows:

(1) If the driver is on the side of the roadway in which the broken line is in place, the driver may cross over the double lines or drive to the left of the double lines when overtaking or passing other vehicles.”

As mentioned above, this is one of those violations that is complex in its language, but let’s break it down.  What it’s saying, at its core, is that you have to stay to the right of double solid lines unless the line closest to you is broken (dotted), allowing you to legally overtake and pass other vehicles.

What does it mean to have violated Vehicle Code 21460 VC?

The wording makes this one a little complicated, so let’s take a moment to pick it apart and see just what it means.  The best way to do that is by putting our fictional California driver, George into the driver’s seat and seeing what happens when he’s out and about on the roads.

George is driving behind another car that is driving slower than George likes.  They are currently driving with a double yellow line to their left.  Frustrated, George pulls over the line, after checking there is no oncoming traffic, and zooms around the slower-moving car, before popping back over to the correct side of the street.  He would be guilty of a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation because he crossed over a double yellow line.  This exact same situation could also happen if it’s a double parallel line in white, too, since the law applies in both situations since they are still double and parallel.

In our second situation, George is driving and comes up behind a car, similar to the first one.  He is in a rush and wants to get to work to beat the coffee line.  To his left are a single, solid yellow line and a dotted one that is facing the other side of the road.  He pulls out around the car and back into the lane ahead of the passed car.  Throughout the entire pass, the dotted line is facing the other side/lane of traffic.  In this case, George is guilty of a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation because the legal passing zone is on the other side of the road and not his.

There are some exceptions to these situations, so let’s take a close look at those using the same situations above with George.  

In the first situation, George comes up on the car that is, unknown to him, broken down.  The car has no flashers on to alert George to this.  So,  George is too close to the car to stop safely.  Acting quickly to be sure he doesn’t hit the broken down car, he veers over the double lanes and around the car to the lane ahead. In this case, it would be an exemption to a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation because this was his only option in order to save from an accident since the other car didn’t signal to let George know there was a problem and to slow down.

In the second situation, George is driving along and being patient with the queue of cars when all of a sudden, a police car is behind him with lights on sirens going.  George is in the way and preventing the police vehicle from getting past him to the clear road ahead.  George crosses over the double line safely in order to allow the emergency vehicle past, and then carefully goes back in place once the traffic around him starts to move again.  In this case, George is exempt from a violation because his only goal was to get out of the way of the emergency vehicle.

What can I do about this violation?

In receiving this violation, you will be issued a list of your citations and given a court date that you will need to attend.  You will also possibly be offered the option to attend traffic school, which we’ll discuss a little later.

The penalty for a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation is a fine of $234 plus additional court fees and the addition of 1 DMV point to your driving record.  You can choose to have the point masked if you consider something like traffic school.  

If you are guilty of this offense, you’ll want to plead as such and pay the fines immediately.  If you believe that you qualify for one of the exceptions, you can have an attorney represent you in court to plead your case.

Other possible Vehicle Code violation connections

There are related violations to receiving one for Vehicle Code 21460 VC.  These offenses can be added to your ticket when you appear in court if the peace officer determines that it is appropriate.  Common additions and similar offenses include:

• Vehicle Code 22108 VC: This violation implies that you have not given the proper 100-foot distance required before turning or changing lanes.
• Vehicle Code 22109 VC: This offense means that you stopped without giving some sort of approved signal that you were going to do so.
• Vehicle Code 22111 VC: There are specific hand signals required when turning.  If you fail to use them or use the incorrect one, this would be the violation you’d receive (Assuming you are not using mechanical signals).

All of these tickets have their own fines and DMV point assessments, so you’ll need to keep this in mind if they are added to the existing Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation.  The peace office or court may choose to use some or all of these in addition to the listed Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation or instead of it in any combination that they see fit.  It often depends on the situation surrounding your ticket in the first place.

Is this ticket eligible for traffic school?

When you receive the mail for your traffic violation, you’ll also see some literature there about whether or not you can attend traffic school as part of your punishment.  This is not required but can be a huge help when you want to help keep your DMV record as clean as possible.

In order to attend an accredited traffic school like MM TRAFFIC SCHOOL, you must not have attended school in the last 18 months, not have committed the citation in a commercial vehicle, and not gained more than 2 DMV points.   If you meet these requirements, then you can attend traffic school for a Vehicle Code 21460 VC violation.  

When you receive a moving citation, the goal of attending traffic school is to address your driving technique and make it better so that you can become a better driver in the future.  This is why it is such a valuable choice to use when receiving your citation paperwork.

MM TRAFFIC SCHOOL makes this as entertaining as possible with carefully designed classes and lesson plans that will be funny, immersive, and, most of all, memorable.  Believing that the best education is fun education, the goal is always to make the courses as fun and easy to remember as possible.  This won’t be the classic lecture style that you may be remembering, but modern courses with visual aids and other surprises are waiting for you.

Attending an accredited traffic school can have manage advantages for you as a California driver.  Firstly, it makes you a better driver so that you can help keep yourself and others safe on the roadway in the future.  Secondly, it helps you keep your insurance premiums as low as possible since DMV points can inflate your premiums when your policy comes up for renewal.  Thirdly, it helps you to keep your DMV record clean and clear by masking the points that you would otherwise receive.  This is important if you were to receive more points in the future since getting too many at one time can result in your license being suspended temporarily!

If you have questions or concerns on MM TRAFFIC SCHOOL, attending traffic school in general, or your  Vehicle Code 21460 VC citation, please feel free to contact us, and we’ll be happy to explain more about what you can expect and what you should know.  FOr a personalized approach to your citation, in particular, you can also reach out to the court that issued your ticket.