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Last week, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that authorizes the city and county of San Francisco, and Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA MTA) to adjudicate fare evasion and other minor transit violations through administrative rather than judicial review.

The legislation will help the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and LA MTA better enforce fare payment policies and address other violations, such as passengers playing loud music, skateboarding and rollerblading on platforms or behaving in a disorderly fashion, SFMTA said.

To take effect Jan. 1, 2007, the law is crucial to improving a proof of payment system, said SFMTA, which currently is hiring more than 20 additional fare inspectors.