City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: January 13, 2026
Agenda Item: 4.A
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Department of Transportation, Finance & Administrative Services
Subject: Approval of First Modification of Contract with Hayden AI for Launch of Bike Lane Enforcement Program
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15321 (Enforcement Actions by Regulatory Agencies) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a first modification to agreement #11617 in the amount of $944,000 with Hayden AI, Inc. for bike lane enforcement services for the Department of Transportation. This will result in a new six-year amended agreement in an amount not to exceed $2,452,904, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Summary
The Mobility Division of the Santa Monica Department of Transportation (DOT) continually evaluates opportunities to enhance City of Santa Monica (City) streets so that people walking, biking, riding transit, driving or scooting can travel safely and comfortably. These investments provide meaningful quality-of-life benefits, with protected bike lanes shown to reduce rider injuries by up to 90%. In 2024, in the interest of further improving safety and throughput on the City’s bike lane network, and in response to direction provided by the City Council in Agenda Item 16E at its September 12, 2023, meeting, Mobility staff proposed implementing an automated bike lane enforcement program using vehicle-mounted cameras, similar to the Automated Bus Lane Enforcement (ABLE) program.
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This program was approved in the FY2025-27 Biennial Budget as a Measure K enhancement. Staff is proceeding with implementation of this program on up to seven City vehicles, through a recommended modification to DOT’s contract with Hayden AI, the provider of our ABLE technology, to improve safety and travel efficiency for all road users by detecting and automatically citing people who are illegally parking in bike lanes.
Discussion
California Assembly Bill (AB) 361, approved on October 8, 2023, allows local jurisdictions to monitor and enforce bicycle lanes using cameras mounted on parking enforcement vehicles. Staff partnered with the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) and the Information Services Department (ISD) on a bike lane enforcement pilot in 2024 to monitor the City’s network of bicycle lanes, identify vehicles illegally parked in those lanes, and provide data on how automated monitoring and enforcement could improve both the safety and the user experience of bike lanes. From May 6 through June 19, 2024, two SMPD parking enforcement vehicles equipped with the camera system operated on several streets near Downtown Santa Monica and along Ocean Park Boulevard. The cameras recorded 1,679 events during the 6-week pilot, with most of the violations found along north-south oriented streets in Downtown Santa Monica.
After reviewing the initial findings, the vendor was asked to flag the most egregious violations, and identified 263 of the 1,679 total violations causing the greatest risk to road users due to the extent the vehicles blocked the bike lane. Staff concluded, based on the pilot data, that vehicles stopping and parking in the City’s bike lanes were a recurring issue of concern that warranted further exploration and mitigation measures to improve safety on our streets for all users. The pilot made clear that expanded implementation using more SMPD vehicles for automated warnings and enforcement could provide a safer and more comfortable experience for bike lane users in our city.
With these concerns in mind, and in alignment with direction provided via Agenda Item 16E at its September 12, 2023, meeting, the City Council approved the implementation of an AB 316 bike lane enforcement program in the FY2025-2027 Biennial Budget as a Measure K enhancement ($200,000 for the first year and $186,000 for each subsequent year).
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With an approved Exception to Competitive Bidding request (ECB #344), staff is requesting a first modification of the Hayden AI contract for ABLE in order to launch a bike lane enforcement program. The approved bike lane enforcement program budget will support the set-up of citation processing software and the installation of cameras on up to seven SMPD parking enforcement vehicles.
Environmental Review
This contract for bike lane enforcement is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15321 of the CEQA Guidelines. Section 15321 exempts project from CEQA that are actions by regulatory agencies to enforce a law or general rule administered or adopted by the regulatory agency. The contract is for automated bike lane enforcement on up to seven SMPD vehicles per California AB 361. Therefore, this contract is exempt pursuant to Section 15321.
Past Council Actions
Meeting Date Description
9/12/23 Councilmember Discussion Item 16E regarding Bike Lane Safety 9/24/24 Award Contract to Hayden Al, Inc. for Automated Bus Lane Enforcement Services
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Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks Council authority to approve funding from the General Fund (funded by Measure K) to increase the amount of contract #11617 with Hayden AI, Inc. for automated bike lane enforcement services for up to seven (7) SMPD vehicles.
Contract Modification Request
Contract #
Current
Authorized
Amount
FY 2025-26
Modified Request
Amount
Future Years
Amount CIP Account #
Total Revised
Contract
Amount
11617 $1,508,904 $200,000 $744,000 C0109160.689000 $2,452,904 Possible financial impacts in the future
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of this recommended action to modify the contract with Hayden AI. Staff will return to Council if specific budget actions are required in the future.
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Prepared By: Barbara Andres, Customer Experience and Innovation Administrator
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. 2024-09-24_Award Contract to Hayden Al, Inc. for Automated Bus Lane Enforcement Services (Web Link)
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B. 2023-09-12 Councilmember Discussion Item Regarding Bike Lane Technology (Web Link)
C. 02_DocuSigned_Hayden_AI_and_City_of_Santa_
D. Oaks Initiative Form Hayden AI_2025-26
E. Levine Act Disclosure Form_Hayden AI_2025-26