String of Bay Area high-profile retail robberies brings calls for action

Q: So we will need original or certified documents in order to get the new federal "REAL ID" to board a plane. What is meant by original or certified documents?

Mary Linduska

Beginning January 22, all California driver licenses and ID cards will also have a new card design. The new card features include a gold miner image on the right side of the card and California poppies on the bottom left. Under ultraviolet light you can see an image of the cardholder's photo, birth date, Golden Gate Bridge and Coit Tower. (Courtesy DMV)
Beginning January 22, all California driver licenses and ID cards will also have a new card design. The new card features include a gold miner image on the right side of the card and California poppies on the bottom left. Under ultraviolet light you can see an image of the cardholder's photo, birth date, Golden Gate Bridge and Coit Tower. (Courtesy DMV)

A: In order to apply for a REAL ID driver license or ID card, you must visit a DMV field office and submit federally required ID documents such as a U.S. passport, passport card, an original or certified copy of a birth certificate, also proof of social security number on a W-2, or paystub.

The identity and social security are the only two that need to be original or certified – meaning the "original" version of that document or "certified" that a state or federal department has reissued.

You'll also need a residency document like a utility bill. (Update: In 2019, the DMV announced that two proofs of residency would be required.) Some folks will also need to present a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court document, depending on the name on their identity document and the name on their driver license application.

But there's no hurry. A REAL ID driver license or ID card or other federally accepted identification won't be required to board a domestic flight until Oct. 1, 2020, but are now available.

For more information, go to REALID.dmv.ca.gov.

Q: With the Highway 92/El Camino Real work in San Mateo, the westbound 92 off-ramp now has three exit lanes onto El Camino. The middle lane allows a left and right turn, and the traffic light facing the middle lane has a red right arrow to indicate no turn on red.

But the light facing the right lane does not have a red arrow — just the red circle. Does that mean turns on red are allowed from the right lane but not the middle lane?

Sam Carver
San Mateo

A: Yes, but this will change. This is confusing and Caltrans has decided to replace the red arrow with circles to clear matters up.

Q: I woke up the other day to markings on my street. What is planned?

Rona Layton
San Jose

A: These markings are placed in advance of work that will require digging up the roadway like paving. The "USA" stands for Underground Service Alert to mark utility locations with spray paint. The 10′ mark means that the area extends 10 feet in the direction of the arrow.

Q: A reader suggested renaming Caltrain to a *ART name like BART and SMART. How about "The Gilroy And San Francisco Area Rapid Transit," or GASFART?

Michael Foster
San Jose

A: Now, that is a name we would notice.

Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@bayareanewsgroup.com.