Placer County Traffic School

Placer County reaches from the edge of the Sacramento Valley over the Sierra Nevada to the north shore of Lake Tahoe, and its two traffic courthouses sit near opposite ends. Interstate 80 is the spine, climbing from Roseville through Rocklin, Loomis and Auburn to Colfax. State Route 65 leaves Interstate 80 in Roseville and heads north through Rocklin to Lincoln. On the Tahoe side, State Route 89 runs south from Truckee into Tahoe City. The Census Bureau counts 442,081 residents in a county with six incorporated cities.

The California Office of Traffic Safety counted 2,277 people killed or injured in Placer County crashes in 2023, which ranks the county 50th of California's 58. In these rankings 1st is the worst result, so Placer sits near the better end overall. Young cyclists are the exception. OTS counted 16 children under 15 killed or injured on bicycles, 10th in the state, and 84 bicyclists of all ages, 32nd.

When the court allows traffic school, you pay the fine plus the administrative fee the court sets, and the court's traffic school page shows the amount. Each case gets its own completion due date, and the certificate has to reach the court by then. Miss it, and the court warns of a conviction reported to the DMV, a point on your record, a referral to county Revenue Services and a hold on your driving record. The CHP's Auburn, Gold Run and Truckee Areas patrol the county, and their tickets go to the same Superior Court as tickets from city police.

Adult traffic goes to two buildings. The Gibson Courthouse at 10820 Justice Center Drive in Roseville is the court's main courthouse, and it hears traffic cases. The Tahoe City Courthouse at 2501 N. Lake Blvd hears traffic too, but the court's traffic page describes its traffic schedule in two different ways. Call the Tahoe clerk at (530) 584-3460 before you make the drive. A driver cited as a minor must appear with a guardian, and the judge decides at that hearing whether traffic school is allowed.

Two other court sites are not traffic locations. The Historic Courthouse at 101 Maple Street in Auburn does not appear on the traffic page, and the temporary courtroom in Rocklin hears only pretrial motions, civil trials and long cause family law hearings. You may see the Roseville courthouse called the Bill Santucci Justice Center, a name the court's own FAQ still uses. Placer has one DMV court code, 31455, filed under the Roseville court on the CTSI list, and the Tahoe City Courthouse has none of its own. No district attorney or public defender sits in a Placer traffic courtroom.