Attention LA bus lane scofflaws: New AI cameras generated more than 5,500 tickets in one month

If you parked in a bus lane or at a bus stop along Wilshire Boulevard or La Brea Avenue between February and March, you might have been among the first in the city of Los Angeles to get a ticket issued in part by automated cameras.

New AI-capable cameras installed on just those two L.A. Metro bus routes helped to issue nearly 10 times the typical number of bus-related parking tickets in the program’s first month.

More than 5,500 citations were sent to cars parked in a bus lane or at a bus stop along those two routes, according to data from the L.A. Department of Transportation — a startling jump from the 570 similar tickets issued citywide in a typical month.

The first phase of the Bus Lane Enforcement Program focused on the stretches of bus lanes for the 720 and 212 routes within the city of L.A. — in all, Metro has nearly 120 bus routes.

The fines are steep at $293 each. All together, the 5,500 citations total to more than $1.6 million in fines. Those fines are divided between Metro, which collects 75%, and LADOT, which receives the remaining quarter.

To put that into context: Since 2020, the city has collected $100 million to $110 million in parking fines each year, according to Crosstown L.A. The news site, an LAist partner newsroom, reported that parking enforcement costs now exceed revenue brought in by about $65 million.

The program’s goal, however, isn't to rack up citations or collect a lot of money, said Anthony Crump, who heads community relations at Metro.

“ What we're looking to do is discourage drivers from using those bus-only lanes for things other than right turns and making sure that our buses can go as fast as possible,” Crump said.

A car parked in a bus-only zone along the 720 Metro bus route.

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Kavish Harjai

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LAist

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How ticketing works

Cameras, two per bus, were first installed to windshields on 50 buses that carry passengers along the 720 and 212 bus routes in November 2024.

LA Metro paid a company called Hayden AI $10.5 million for the equipment and to facilitate the program.

One camera detects cars in bus lanes and records a video. The other camera takes a photo of the rear license plate. Information from each camera is sent to a traffic officer at L.A. DOT who reviews the recording and photo and then makes the final determination on whether to issue a citation.

If the officer decides the evidence doesn’t warrant a citation, images are destroyed within 15 days. If a citation is disputed, the images can be kept until 60 days after a final decision is made. Even if the officer decides to issue a citation, the images have to be destroyed within six months of the incident.

For the first 60 days of the program, cars parked in bus lanes along the 720 and 212 bus routes received warnings.

“That was basically a notice to people that you need to change your behavior because now we're beginning to enforce it,” Crump said, adding that Metro used social media and physical signage to inform riders that the enforcement program was about to start.

Violators started receiving tickets on Feb. 17.

The 720 bus route runs on Wilshire Boulevard from downtown L.A. to Santa Monica. The 212 bus shuttles riders on La Brea Avenue from Hawthorne to Hollywood.

The routes were chosen because they have bus-only lanes and also have a large number of riders, Crump said.

What’s next

The violations aren't limited to those areas, as a video released by LA Metro (above) documents.

On March 10, L.A. DOT and Metro extended the cameras to buses that service the 70 and 910/950 bus routes. Both routes run from El Monte through downtown L.A., and the 910/950 routes extend down to the harbor.

So folks who park in the bus-only lanes along those routes are receiving warnings until May 9. After that point, violators can expect to receive the $293 fines.

Crump did not say when or if the camera systems will be installed on other bus routes in the city.

Other cities in California, including Culver City and Sacramento, are implementing similar programs, made possible by a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in 2021 that permits the use of cameras to aid cities in issuing parking citations.