Pedestrian Accident Causes Morning Traffic

Because the two streets that intersect at this location are both “One Ways” people who are making the left turn do not have to slow down for cross traffic thus do not stop or slow down to look for pedestrians. Even when the sign posts “Walk” I have seen and almost been hit as drivers try to make the turn.

The city needs to do something, either post better signs, install lights designating left turns or blocking off the west most lanes from turns.

I don’t know if any of my concerns were associated with today’s accident but I am sure others have had similar near miss moments at that intersection.

One intersection down (7th and Olive) is a police booby trap for city revenues. There are two motorcycle cops that make their ticket quotas by camping out just after the turn in the afternoons, when it is illegal to make a left, whether or not pedestrians have fully crossed or not.

My beef with that intersection is that the combination of these factors makes it hard to see the signs:

1. Extra wide streets.
2. Buses whose drivers aggressively cut in and almost side-swipe you.
3. Businesspeople darting in and out of traffic.
4. Taxis.
5. Cyclists.
6. Pedestrians.

If your eyes stop to look upward towards signs, it severely increases the risk of an accident. plus, everybody and their brother beeps at you, adding further to the stimulus.

As per the above tragedy one block up, drivers should be watching for pedestrians first--that's the most important thing.

As for tickets culled by booby traps, believe that people should be let off with a warning, not set up in traffic sting operations. Shame on the city. With the Mayor's recent statements about increasing the cop force by 30% "at whatever cost" to the city, these two quota-stuffers on motorcycles could be off somewhere fighting real crime, without any additional cost passed on to residents.

A real solution: Lighted signs and crosswalks that other cities like Glendale and Santa Monica have that are visible in a driver's point of view, not a tiny blip that gets drowned out in the stimulus.

Signed, Someone who got their first ticket ever yesterday, and who now has a $150 ticket and a "misdemeanor" on her driving record that I must state on job applications and background searches for loans, and makes my car insurance go up--thanks City of L.A. Way to foster a great respect for the city's police force. Fighting "crime" one intersection at a time.