Traffic

Resolve your citations online or by phone. It's easy and convenient!

Individuals with traffic or minor infraction citations can resolve these cases any time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Online access is available here. Phone access is available by calling (415) 448-8230, Monday - Friday, 5:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Saturday, 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

These systems are user-friendly and will prompt an individual to enter a case number, citation or driver's license number, and date of birth to retrieve information about infraction cases pending before the court. The public can use these systems to:

• Locate and review information about citations pending before the court.
• Pay infraction fines and fees.
• Set up payment plans and view future payment dates.
• Sign up and pay for traffic violator school.
• Review traffic violator school completion due dates.
• Post bail when setting up a contested court trial date.
• Check scheduled court dates.
• Get a one-time 30 day extension to pay the fine or to appear in court.
• Get a one-time 30 day extension to complete traffic violator school.

Citations and Notices

The court will mail a courtesy notice to the address on your citation. The courtesy notice contains general information about requirements and options available for resolving the ticket, which may include:

• Amount due (called the bail)
• Proof of correction requirements for mechanical violations
• Mandatory court appearance requirements
• Traffic school eligibility requirements

The date at the bottom of your citation is not a court date. It is the date by which you should take action on your citation.

There are many citations that can be taken care of without appearing in court, by paying the bail, paying the bail along with requesting traffic school, or by providing proof of correction. A small number of citations require individuals to appear in court. The courtesy notices for these citations will say "Mandatory Appearance." Individuals with these citations must appear in court.

The courtesy notice may take a few days to several weeks to be mailed. If you do not receive a courtesy notice, it may be because:

• The court has not received the original citation from the law enforcement agency.
• The Department of Motor Vehicles may not have your current address.
• The address written on the citation may be incorrect or incomplete.
• Information may have been missing from the citation and sent back to the officer to amend or correct.

Individuals are responsible for contacting the court, by phone or in person, by the promise to appear date on their citation, whether or not they received their courtesy notice in the mail.

Individuals who do not respond to the courtesy notice by the due date will receive a 'final notice - failure to appear' giving them one final opportunity to resolve their citations before penalties and court sanctions are imposed. Individuals may request a one-time extension to pay the bail by contacting the court in person or by phone on or before the due date.

Individuals who disregard all court notices, make arrangements to pay the bail, or appear in court but do not fulfill these requirements may have additional penalties imposed.

There are five ways to take care of citations:

1. Pay the entire amount on the courtesy or final notice on or before the due date (unless the courtesy notice states that a mandatory appearance is required). More information on payment options is available by clicking here.
2. Pay the entire amount on the courtesy or final notice in installments of up to 12 months, with a minimum monthly payment of $50. These installment plans do not require individuals to appear in court to request extra time to pay. Court staff can set up a payment plan in the Clerk's Office, Room C-10.
3. Request that all or a portion of the bail get converted to community service work. The court has a community service work program for individuals who cannot afford to pay the bail on their citations. To be eligible for community service work, individuals must meet financial qualifications. For more information on this option, please click here.
4. Appear in court and plead not guilty by the deadline indicated on the citation or courtesy notice. Individuals who wish to contest their citations may schedule a court trial at the Traffic Clerk's Office. The law enforcement officer who wrote the citation will be subpoenaed to appear at the trial. For more information about scheduling a court trial, please click here.
5. Request a trial by written declaration and plead not guilty by appearing in person at the Traffic Clerk's Office or by writing to the court to request this kind of trial. Individuals often choose this option if they live far away from the court. For more information on this option, please click here.

Once payment of a fine or bail becomes delinquent, the court may add a $100 civil assessment and other monetary sanctions to the amount still owed and forward the past-due account to collections vender (Linebarger).

For more information about Linebarger click here.

Your fine may be reduced upon receipt of proof of valid correction on many equipment, registration, and license violations. Proof of correction for a correctable (fix-it) violation must be verified and signed off by a law enforcement officer on the back of the citation and received in the Traffic Clerk's office by the due date.

An exception to this rule: if cited for no proof of insurance, a law enforcement officer cannot sign off the back of the citation. A copy of an insurance policy or insurance card that was valid when the citation was issued must be presented to the court at least one (1) day before the citation date. The policy must indicate the effective and expiration dates.

There will be a $25.00 transaction fee per correction, due when proof of correction is submitted.

If you have a correctable or "fix-it" violation, you must mail or bring the proof of correction with the fee(s) to the court by your due date.

Parking citations received in Marin County are NOT filed with the Court.

The Marin Parking Authority handles all parking citations received in Marin County, except parking citations in San Rafael.

To make a payment, protest a citation or make an inquiry, contact one of the following agencies:

For citations issued in the City of San Rafael by phone at (415) 458-5333 or by mail at Parking Services Division, 1400 Fifth Avenue, San Rafael, California, 94901. To pay parking citations online, click here. For all other citations, contact the Marin Parking Authority by phone at (800) 989-2058 or by mail at P.O. Box 10479, Newport Beach, California 92658-0479. The Marin Parking Authority does not have a local office. Business may be conducted by mail, by phone or online at www.citationprocessingcenter.com.

For more information, visit the California Department of Motor Vehicles website, www.dmv.ca.gov.

You may be eligible for traffic school if you meet the following requirements:

• You have a valid California Driver's License.
• You cannot be assigned to or attended traffic school in the last 18 months.
• If charged with a speeding violation, the speed must not have been over 25 m.p.h. over the posted speed limit.
• The citation must be an infraction that is reportable to DMV.
• The section(s) cannot require a mandatory appearance.
• If you have a commercial driver's license, but you were not driving a commercial vehicle.
• Certain serious vehicle code violations are not eligible for traffic school.

If you meet these requirements and wish to attend traffic school, a $52 administrative fee is payable to the court, PLUS the amount of bail indicated on your courtesy notice. A separate fee is collected directly by the traffic school you choose to attend.

Follow the instructions on the back of the courtesy notice and register on the court's website here, by telephone at (415) 448-8230, or in person at the Traffic Clerk's Office in Room C-10 during office hours.

When registering for traffic violator school with the court, individuals have sixty (60) calendar days from the date the payment is received to complete it. Upon successful completion of traffic violator school, the DMV will notify the court and a confidential conviction will be sent to the DMV under Vehicle Code section 1803.5. Failure to complete traffic violator school by the due date provided will result in reporting the citation as a conviction to the DMV.

To find a classroom traffic school near you or a traffic school online, visit the Department of Motor Vehicles website. The traffic schools listed on the site are licensed and regulated by the Department of Motor Vehicles. The court assumes no liability when individuals choose this option. If an individual does not complete traffic school, all fines and fees posted with the court are forfeited.

The traffic school will notify the DMV of course completion, and the court will access that information from the DMV through its secure website.

The court may grant one 30-day extension of time to complete traffic violator school as long as the request for extension is made prior to the due date of the certificate. No further extensions will be approved.