West Hollywood City Manager Paul Arevalo offered statistics about pedestrian and bicycle accidents last night during another in a series of discussions about crosswalk safety.
Arevalo said there have been 71 accidents involving pedestrians and bicyclists in the past three and a half years in West Hollywood. The peak year was 2012, when there were 21. Most accidents occurred in designated crosswalks, Arevalo said.
To date this year, the city has recorded five accidents, with only one in a crosswalk. That accident, on June 28, involved a pedestrian hit by a car as he crossed Santa Monica Boulevard near Westmount. It sparked a crosswalk safety campaign that has led to formation of a group called Cross Safe WeHo, appearances of advocates for pedestrian safety before the city’s Transportation and Public Safety commissions, illegal postings of crosswalk safety reminders by a City Council candidate and a sidewalk distribution of safety reminders by Capt. Gary Honings of the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station.
Speakers at Monday night’s Council meeting recommended a variety of solutions that also were presented at the Transportation and Public Safety commission meetings.
The West Hollywood City Council last night approved a proposal by Councilmembers John Duran and John Heilman to spend $15,000 on a campaign to promote crosswalk safety. The Council in February authorized the city to install flashing beacons at three additional crosswalks. Bids have not been requested from vendors for those beacons because city staffers are researching various solutions to the problem. Councilmember John Heilman said that he and Mayor John D’Amico have discussed the possibility of installing pedestrian-activated stop lights at crosswalks that would be synced with existing traffic stop lights. Such lights would require that pedestrians wait until nearby stop lights are activated and cars stop moving before crossing the street.
Accountability goes both ways. Where have all the crosswalk accidents taken place this year which you allege have not been reported, and about which you’ve read? Sounds like you’re either in a position to spring a huge exposè, or you are being bombastic.
I sat In a mayors meeting a while back and heard the past mayor say that crime was not that bad in weho. Only the week before someone was stabbed in target and two different young men had the …beat out of them while walking home and one while at an ATM Someone asked me to get involved so I went to the Safety committee meeting and listened to the sheriffs rep give statistical data on crime that clearly did not match reality. We have a very highly paid manager and staff. ONLY ONE ACCIDENT Thats a JOKE We need… Read more »
Wasn’t your whole point based on crosswalks, previously?
In the month of June there were 6 accidents between cars and ‘people’ 4 accidents between cars and bicycles, and 2 accidents between cars and people. (within weho city limits reported)
Perhaps one person was ‘hit’ in the crosswalk.. but the other accidents indicate that there’s a lot more to pedestrian safety, bicycle mobility and distracted drivers that needs immediate attention.