Hi Nikki and Justin,
Since I sent the last email, I've seen multiple posts about accidents and and witnessed two more near misses at the exact
intersection I wrote about to you last year, Central and Elm. Below is an exerpt from yet another long NextDoor discussion about
the accident and how dangerous this intersection is. Even just painted crosswalk lines would be an improvement (though would not
have prevented the accident this evening). What ever happened with the evaluation that was done?
Here are some excerpts from the thread that started after the accident this evening, its really long, I just picked 3 comments out
as examples:-------There was anaccidentthis evening down that direction on Central. I heard the squeal as I was at the curb
sweeping up debris so I looked up and saw the apparently big, white car go diagonally across the street, ending up facing east in
the west bound lane of Central. Whether it was Walnut or Elm I don't know because when I saw someone approach the car I knew they
would call 911 if needed, and indeed the big guns showed up soon thereafter: 2 large firetrucks, multiple police, and finally
ambulance. So I stayed out of the way. Yes, this is not the first time I have seenaccidentsthere, and I would love to see speed
bumps and stop signs on multiple streets.
About a month ago I was nearly hit at Central and Elm. I was walking across Elm at the corner where there is (or was) a stop sign,
and a car went through at about 30 mph. It actually brushed me aside slightly -- I wasn't hit, but I don't think the driver even
noticed me. He came to a fishtailing stop down by the school when a car came out of that drive.
It’s interesting that this recent accident with the young girl on the bicycle (poor girl, I hope the is okay!!) was recorded as
her fault for not stopping at the stop sign as she was on elm crossing central. My own experience from walking/biking/driving
through that intersection daily is that the people on Elm hover. “Is anyone coming? Should I go?” Sometimes drivers slow down and
wave cyclists to cross, despite having the right of way.-------
Thank You,Suzan
On Tue, Oct 24, 2017 at 8:28 AM suzan szollar wrote:
> Hi Nikki & Justin,
Following up to check-in on what you determined from your evaluation?
The vegetation was trimmed, but didn't really improve visibility down the street, you still have to step into the street to see if
a car is coming, and cars continue to speed down Central. In other words it still doesn't feel safe amongst parents to let our
kids cross on their own to get to school.
Thank You,Suzan
On Thu, Aug 24, 2017 at 4:25 PM, Nagaya, Nicole H wrote:
> Hi Ms. Szollar,
Thanks for your message and sharing your concerns. I appreciate your concern for safety for schoolchildren and your son crossing
Central on his way to Upper Laurel.
The installation of stop signs is governed by a set of criteria set by the federal and state governments to make sure they are
“warranted” – these criteria include a minimum number of vehicles, bicycles or pedestrians traveling through the intersection at a
certain number of hours on a typical day; a history of collisions; and/or a visibility obstruction that can’t otherwise be fixed.
We evaluated the number of vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians last school year after Upper Laurel started, and this intersection
didn’t meet the criteria for stop signs installation at that time.
However, we’ve had staff go back out and take a look at the intersection at Central/Elm and Laurel/Elm this week in response to
your message below and from other neighbors in the area. Based on that visit, we are currently working through steps to trim
vegetation and remove some street trees that are in poor health or already dead, and we will continue to evaluate the intersection
once the landscaping has been removed to check if visibility has been improved. If visibility is not sufficiently improved, we can
look at the stop sign request again and advise you of next steps. I’ve summarized the process a bit more below.
The stop sign installation would need to be presented to the City’s Complete Streets Commission and City Council for approval;
this process takes a minimum of 3-4 months to conduct the evaluation and schedule the meetings prior to installation. Rather than
have you create a petition at this point, I’d suggest that we complete our evaluation (approximately 3 weeks) and then we can
confirm with you next steps and timing. At the point of the Commission/Council meetings, a petition is not required, but can help
show the Commissioners and Councilmembers the level of neighborhood support for a stop sign.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any further questions or would like to discuss.
Thanks,
Nikki
Nicole H. Nagaya, PE
Assistant Public Works Director
City of Menlo Park
650.330.6781 [tel:(650)%20330-6781]
From: suzan szollar [mailto:szollar@gmail.com [szollar@gmail.com]]
Sent: Saturday, August 19, 2017 12:16 AM
To: Nagaya, Nicole H ; Murphy, Justin I C [JICMurphy@menlopark.org]>
Subject: Stop Signs for Central@Elm and Laurel@Elm
Nikki and Justin,
There was just a NextDoor post today about an accident on Central at the corner with Elm
.
I've been meaning for months to contact the city to ask how to request a stop sign:
* For Central at the corner of Central and Elm
* For Laurel at the corner of Laurel and Elm
A few months ago there was an accident on the Laurel/Elm corner and the person from the city who came out said to email the city
and get the support of neighbors. I talked to many of my neighbors and they all want the stop signs too. Most of us have kids and
it feels unsafe to let them walk to Upper Laurel or even cross the street by themselves to play together. We won't let our son
walk to school by himself because he has to cross Central, and you have to walk y into
the street
to be able to see if there is a car coming. (We live on the corner of Laurel and Elm).
Here
are some photos and video of th
e Central & Elm corner - you can see I have to step into the street to be able to see oncoming traffic
:
https://goo.gl/photos/NBCQHgquFfjihVeq7 [https://goo.gl/photos/NBCQHgquFfjihVeq7]
What is the most effective way to request the stop signs? What is the best way to show the support of neighbors? Should I ask them
to sign a petition onchange.org [http://change.org/]? It would make this
part of the Willows
feel
much
safer for our kids
, we get so many cars speeding down Central and Laurel
.
Thank You,
Suzan
