Street racing isn't a big problem in foothill communities, where winding roads and hilly terrain make speed contests extremely dangerous and difficult to execute. But that isn't the case farther down the hill, where long stretches of wide roadways attract drivers willing to risk it all for a moment of glory, legal or not.

The results of street racing gone wrong become news stories about the damage and destruction, lives lost and families destroyed, caused by people who are unable to resist the temptation to race on streets designed for more sedate driving. In spite of racetracks opening their gates to people who want to legally race, street racing continues to occur on city streets and county roads and innocent people are getting hurt or killed as a result.

It's difficult to come up with the actual number of street racing-related accidents, injuries and deaths due to the differences in jurisdictional reporting, according to Chris Cochran, spokesperson for The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS). "The two main problems with accident statistics are that street racing is either organized or spur-of-the-moment," said Cochran. "They're classified under many different collision factors - speeding, unsafe passing, pedestrian, etcetera Ð other than street racing." For example, 607 fatalities related to unsafe speed were reported in 2005; how many were the result of street racing was not part of that data, Cochran said.

The Sacramento Police Department, in conjunction with agencies from Folsom, Roseville, Rancho Cordova, Sacramento County, Elk Grove and the Bureau of Automotive Repair, have joined forces in a program called "DRAGNET", focusing on enforcing violations associated with illegal street racing and illegal racing modifications made to vehicles. Funded by a state grant from the OTS, the program recorded 644 citations for exhibition of speed in 2006, along with 357 citations for reckless driving, 1,592 citations for modifications made to vehicles, 195 arrests and 184 towed vehicles.

Those agencies, and others in the state, will have a new weapon in their arsenal to combat street racing, if Senate Bill (SB) 266 becomes law.

California State Senator Darrell Steinberg introduced that legislation earlier this month, designed to help California cities and counties reduce a driver's temptation to illegally race by forcing drivers to forfeit their vehicles if they are convicted of participating in a street race. Although many municipalities already have laws and ordinances addressing the issue, hitting a convicted street racer in the pocketbook by confiscating their vehicle may make those drivers think twice before they race; at least, that's what Steinberg and his supporters hope.

"The senator feels like 'enough is enough' and something should be done to create a deterrent for the act itself," said Jim Evans, spokesperson for Senator Steinberg.

Steinberg held a town hall meeting on April 10th in Elk Grove to discuss SB 266 with his constituents. That city was chosen because of a recent rash of street racing-caused accidents and deaths within city limits, Evans said. Elk Grove City Councilmember Gary Davis is one of the bill's backers and hoped to raise public awareness of the problem by hosting the meeting, according to Evans. Other backers include California Senator Dave Cox, Assembly Members Ted Gaines and Lois Wolk and the League of California Cities. "It was a well-attended event and people expressed concerns that the laws can't be tougher," Evans said

The bill was introduced on the California Senate floor last week and now heads to the Senate Public Safety Committee, chaired by Senator Gloria Romero, for consideration on April 24th. If all goes well, SB 266 could be on the governor's desk by the end of summer.

"The senator appreciates the support of everybody who have already offered their support of the bill and is looking forward to working with local communities on implementing the bill, if it does indeed become law," said Evans.

Public comment on this statewide legislation should be directed to members of the Senate Public Safety Committee and/or local state representatives, Evans said. Information about and addresses for Senate representatives is available at www.senate.ca.gov; contact information for Assembly members is available at www.assembly.ca.gov.

At least two northern California tracks open their facilities on Wednesday nights during race season to people who want to race their cars legally. Sacramento Raceway (www.sacramentoraceway.com) sponsors Street Legal Drags and Infineon Raceway (www.infineonraceway.com) opens its drag strip to the public for the California National Guard Wednesday Night Drags. The objective at both facilities is to provide a safe, legal and controlled environment in which people can race their vehicles. Basic requirements are a valid driver's license and passing a technical inspection. Additional requirements and more information is available at each track's respective website.