San Diego parking enforcement officers have cited nearly 400 beachgoers and residents for parking within 20 feet of an intersection near La Jolla’s Windansea Beach.
Since March 2025, when the city began enforcing the state’s new daylighting law, which prohibits drivers from parking near intersections, San Diego parking officers have flocked to a popular street to ticket unsuspecting drivers.
State lawmakers approved Assembly Bill 413 in October 2023 in hopes of increasing pedestrian safety and providing drivers with more visibility to see pedestrians.
The law, however, did not require cities or other jurisdictions to paint curbs red or post signs to notify drivers of the restriction. In densely populated areas or near popular surf spots and beaches, this means drivers can often mistakenly believe they are parking in a permitted spot.
That appears to be the case near La Jolla’s top surf breaks at Windansea Beach.
City data obtained by La Jolla Village News show 704 daylighting tickets were issued in La Jolla’s 92037 zip code from March 2025 through June 1, 2026. Nearly half of them occurred near the popular Windansea surf break and surrounding beaches.
La Jolla has the fourth-highest number of daylighting tickets in all of San Diego, behind communities in and around North Park. Since March 2025, when the city began enforcing the daylighting law, vehicle owners parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk have paid nearly $55,000 in citations, according to city data.
In a statement to Times of San Diego, Council President Joe LaCava, whose district includes La Jolla, says he supports the law and is requesting that additional curbs be painted red to better inform drivers and pedestrians.
“I am aware of the tickets being issued near Windansea Beach and across the city as we enforce California law and improve pedestrian safety,” LaCava said. “To assist residents and visitors, I continue to encourage the Transportation Department to implement the law at intersections in District 1 and throughout the city. Recently, in light of the three traffic-related fatalities in Pacific Beach, I allocated discretionary district funds to accelerate painting curbs red.”
