Community Corner

Letter: City Says 'No Justification' for Crosswalk at Site of Pedestrian vs. Police Vehicle Accident

Culver City residents in the Washington Boulevard/Prospect Avenue neighborhood say sadly, one of their neighbors being struck by a police car may finally bring the need for a crosswalk to the City's attention.

Thank you for reporting the Feb. 14 accident involving a Culver City Police car vs. pedestrian on Washington Boulevard near Prospect Avenue.

Residents in this neighborhood have been pleading with the City for several years to put a pedestrian crosswalk in this area. This is the real story. Unfortunately it may have taken one of our neighbors getting hit by a police car to bring it to the public's attention.

During a recent neighborhood watch meeting, the topic of a pedestrian crosswalk near Huron/Prospect and Washington was again brought up, in light of the recent accident. The response from the City was the following, as noted from the meeting minutes:

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"The discussion evolved from the accident to a discussion of why there isn’t a crosswalk closer to the Mosque to better accommodate all pedestrian traffic. I mentioned that was discussed with Gabe Garcia, Culver City Traffic Engineer, 18 months ago during the intersection redesign for Tilden Terrace. Based on California and federal traffic laws, and numerous studies, Mr. Garcia had not been able to justify a crosswalk there."

The residents in this area would like to know the specifics of said studies and the criteria that this section of Washington Boulevard did not meet in order to get a pedestrian crosswalk?

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Just 1.8 miles west on Washington Boulevard at Boise Avenue there is a pedestrian crosswalk. The difference between these two locations is that at Boise/Washington there is no retail presence like a 7-11 store; there is no elementary school nearby; there is no mosque nearby; there is no church; it is not a main route for students walking to and from the high school or the middle school.

All of the above mentioned conditions exist at Washington and Huron, yet this intersection does not meet the "criteria" for a pedestrian crosswalk. We want the City to explain how Boise and Washington qualified for a crosswalk and Huron and Washington does not?

Emails to the mayor, city council, and Traffic Engineer Gabe Garcia requesting this data, have all gone unanswered.

Please see attached photos of the area in question.

Sincerely,

George Marsh

Tilden Avenue resident

Editor's note: Letters may be edited for brevity and clarity.


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