Louisiana state troopers and the LSU police department are offering motorists an almost two month grace period on a series of new traffic laws which went into effect Aug. 15. For most of these laws, state troopers will be stopping violators and issuing warnings rather than citations until Oct. 1.
The new traffic laws are generally stricter versions of previous laws and increase the penalties and limitations of older laws involving seat belts, window tint and general vehicle operation. Police will also enforce a new set of regulations regarding driving under theinfluence.
State troopers and LSUPD said they are using the grace period to educate the public about the new laws instead of immediately penalizing them for new laws.
“We’re going to offer the same grace period as the state police,” said Maj. Lawrence Rabalias, LSUPD spokesman. “But, at some point, drivers are going to have to realize these are the laws, and they will be penalized for the violation.”
One of the new regulations will have no grace period and is already being enforced after it was signed into law July 1.
Act 236 strengthens the penalties for driving with a suspended license if the suspension was the result of a DUI, vehicular manslaughter or vehicular injuring.
While motorists who were once ticketed and released when caught, the new law makes breaking suspension a criminal offense, and offenders will be arrested.
The state will begin to fully enforce Act 288 on Sept. 1. The law increases the suspension period for drivers who refuse to submit to chemical testing when arrested for DUI.
The suspension period for the first refusal of a test will increase from six months to a year, and the penalty for a second refusal within a five-year period has increased from 545 days to two years.
Act 166 is a revision of the current seat belt law and requires the driver and all passengers of any vehicle 10,000 pounds or less to buckle up. Citations will not be issued until Oct. 1.
In October, violators of Act 166 will be subject to a $25 fine for a first offense and a $50 fine for the second offense. All subsequent violations will cost drivers another $50 in fines with the addition of court costs.
The Louisiana seat belt law is a primary offense law, giving police the right to stop a motorists for this violation alone.
Police will issue warnings through Oct 1. for violations of ACT 147, which requires motorists provide bicyclists a three foot safe zone when overtaking and passing bikers on a roadway.
Rabalias said the frequent bicycle traffic on campus will make this new regulation of special importance to the University community.
Under Act 190, motorists on roadways with multiple lanes will no longer be allowed to travel exclusively in the left hand lane. After Oct.1, state troopers and LSUPD will ticket drivers who use the left lane for travel instead of passing.
“The only reason to be in the left hand lane is if you’re passing slower traffic or if there is congestion in the right lane and the left lane is the only one that is moving,” said Sgt. Markus Smith, Louisiana state police public affairs unit.
Smith said Act 190 is being enforced primarily to help the flow of traffic throughout the state and to provide emergency vehicles with clearer roadways.
In the past, drivers with a reference from a doctor could be excused from the window tint laws if their physician said the driver had a medical condition which required protection from sunlight.
Act 175 revises the current law and requires applicants for exemption to provide a sworn affidavit from their physicians outlining the specific medical condition which would require darker than legal tint.
Smith said after Oct. 1, drivers with illegal window tint will have to prove why their medical condition couldn’t be corrected by wearing sunglasses instead of deeply tinting the entire window.
 
—-Contact Adam Duvernay at [email protected]