California rules signal end of road for high-pollution trucks and gas-powered lawn mowers

Forget speeding tickets: California truck drivers will soon have to watch out for pollution tickets.

State regulators on Thursday voted to crack down on heavy duty trucks weighing more than 14,000 pounds — those big semi-trailers that make up just 3% of all vehicles in California but spend so much time on the road they account for more than half of all pollution from cars and trucks each year in the Golden State.

New rules will require these big trucks, including ones from other states passing through California, to be tested at least four times per year to make sure they meet the state's standards for particulate matter and ozone pollution.