LOS ANGELES, CA – A Los Angeles couple is contesting a $293 citation issued from an AI-assisted camera on a Metro bus, saying they were never parked in the downtown bus lane where the ticket says they were.
Chris Orsi and Sarah Haruko said they were driving east on Sixth Street near Spring Street on Sept. 24 when they moved into the bus lane to turn right into a friend’s garage. The citation arrived in the mail about a week later.
The couple said they contested the ticket about five weeks before going public and were told a decision could take six to eight months. They said they are speaking out to warn other drivers about what they see as flaws in the system.
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) had not responded to a request for comment on the couple’s ticket as of Nov. 13, and camera vendor Hayden AI referred questions about it to LADOT.
Couple says they stopped briefly before turning
Haruko said the couple pulled into the bus lane and waited for pedestrians to cross the sidewalk in front of the garage and for the garage door to open. She said that as they turned in, a bus passed them on the left.
The couple’s Kia was recorded in the bus lane by a camera on that bus, according to the couple. They maintain that they stopped only briefly as part of the turn into the garage and did not park.
Haruko said the couple was shocked when the ticket arrived. Orsi said he feels the city is casting a wide net with its policies and that drivers are left to fend for themselves.
Couple asks for closer review
Orsi said he believes the city needs to pay more attention to the system and “the flaws in it” and make corrections. Haruko said she wants the process to involve a person who can look at the whole context of a situation.
The couple also said they are not alone. They said other drivers have posted their own bus lane ticket stories on social media, and Haruko said the program is doing this to “a lot of people.”
How the bus cameras and review work
Metro, which runs the program with LADOT, says each bus carries two cameras. According to a Metro news release, the first camera captures the presence of a vehicle in the bus lane, while the second records the vehicle’s license plate number.
Metro has said one camera uses computer vision to detect vehicles and traffic lane lines. When a bus lane or bus stop violation is detected, the second camera records the license plate of the violating vehicle, according to Metro’s announcement of the program’s launch.
A traffic officer with LADOT then reviews the evidence and verifies the accuracy of the image before a ticket is issued, according to Metro. Metro’s Bus Lane Enforcement program page states that the bus-mounted cameras capture videos and photos of violations, which LADOT reviews before issuing citations.
Program began with a warning period
Metro launched the Bus Lane Enforcement pilot with LADOT in November 2024, starting with a 60-day warning period. Ticketing followed in 2025, and Metro and LADOT expanded it to Lines 910, 950 and 70 on May 12, 2025.
Metro said at that expansion that motorists who illegally park in those bus lanes face a penalty starting at $293, with fines increasing for repeat offenders.
Citations and revenue in 2025
LADOT figures show the program issued more than 115,000 citations in the city of Los Angeles in 2025, bringing in about $19.6 million in gross revenue. The numbers come from an LADOT report to the City Council dated April 7, 2026, which lists 115,890 citations and $19,603,937 in gross revenue from February through December 2025.
That report was filed under Council File 21-1224, which the City Council received on Oct. 21, 2021, and which covers the automated bus lane enforcement program run by LADOT and Metro. The file lists a Los Angeles ordinance and the April 2026 LADOT report, which was referred to the council’s Transportation and Budget and Finance committees.
Under the agreement between the two agencies described in the report, Metro keeps 75 percent of net revenue and the city receives 25 percent.
Where drivers can contest a citation
For violations captured in the city of Los Angeles, Metro directs motorists with questions about citation video evidence, contesting citations or making payments to the LADOT Parking Violations Bureau. The bureau can be reached at 866-561-9724, according to Metro’s program page.
Contest remains pending
The couple’s contest of the Sept. 24 citation remains pending, and they said a decision could take six to eight months. Orsi and Haruko said they will keep fighting the ticket.
