Sign on gravel truck doesn't trump state's vehicle code

QWe were behind a gravel truck today that had a sign on it that said something like, “Stay back, we are not responsible for broken windows.” If that statement is true, why is the driver exempt from responsibility if part of the load causes damage to someone's car?

AIf Honk says he has a full head of hair, that does not make it so. Like that message on the truck, it is just wishful thinking.

When Honk called him, Mitch Smith, an officer and spokesman for the California Highway Patrol based in Westminster, immediately cited the section of the California Vehicle Code that applies.

“A truck is responsible to secure the load so it doesn't lose material,” he said in his words, thankfully, and not the Vehicle Code's legalese. “If any damage results from that vehicle's load not being secured, it is that driver's responsibility.”

California law does permit ice, water and feathers to legally fall from a vehicle, Smith said.

If your vehicle catches damaging gravel or something else that came off of another vehicle, try to — safely — get the license plate number and, maybe if it is a commercial truck, the company name from a side door.

Pull off of the freeway or over to the side of a street and report the problem via 911, Smith said. You can later pass along the info to your insurance carrier.

QI just returned from a road trip that I take frequently to Northern California. I can't believe the rest stops have been closed on Highway 101 for months, possibly years, with no visible construction taking place to get them reopened. The rest stop in Gaviota in Santa Barbara County has been closed for what seems like years. I believe we pay the highest gas tax compared with any other state, so I can't believe there is not available money to correct this. Can you possibly shed some light on what's going on?

ACalifornia has certainly struggled to keep open some of its rest stops. The ones the Honkmobile has pulled up to over the years have been well-kept and pleasant — when they are open.

The problem is often water — fixes on the infrastructure, often with harsh conditions on lonely stretches far from any city, take some serious time.

The Gaviota rest stops on each side of Highway 101 closed a year ago to fix the wastewater system.

“The reopening date is still being nailed down,” said Alexa Bertola, a Caltrans spokeswoman.

Farther north, above Paso Robles, the Camp Roberts rest areas are shuttered as well, closing last fall. They are expected to reopen in September. There, an aging wastewater treatment system is again the problem and will be replaced.

“These improvements will enhance reliability, keeping the rest areas open more consistently and allow a variety of repairs to be made remotely,” Bertola said about Camp Roberts in an email.

When asked why the work takes so long on rest areas and why workers aren't visible at times, Bertola told Honk:

There have been supplychain woes, and such upgrades from 1970s systems are major and complex; workers might not be visible to passers-by because they are in buildings or a bit away from the structures.

Getting approval for rising prices can add to delays, too.