Don’t Read These News Briefs Until After You Vote
It’s Election Day! Today until 8 p.m. is the countywide primary election that will decide numerous races, including L.A.’s next mayor, and lots of other elected officials that will shape the Los Angeles region, for better or worse. If you haven’t already voted, please get out and vote, then come back and read the rest of the news briefs below.
If you’re looking for endorsements, nonprofits like Streetsblog can’t help you. Streetsblog does have coverage to inform you where L.A. Mayoral candidates stand. For more information, voters might try these other election websites: Knock-LA, L.A. Daily News, L.A. Podcast, L.A. Times, LAist, League of Women Voters, Long Beach Post and/or Streets For All.
Now for some recent news bits.
Adding (and Removing) Do-It-Yourself Crosswalks
L.A.’s clandestine Crosswalk Collective has struck again. This time, new crosswalks have appeared at the intersection of Hawthorn Avenue and Vista Street, right in front of Gardner Elementary School. One hint that the city hasn’t quite made this intersection safe is the presence of that highway style crash barrier installed to keep inattentive drivers from colliding with the school.
The city has been busy erasing the Crosswalk Collective’s DIY crosswalk improvements, faster than you can shake a… er… faster than they can remove vigilante boulders in the public right-of-way. The city slapped the collective with fines; readers can support the collective’s work – help pay off their fines – via a gofundme campaign.
LADOT Permanent Slow Streets
The Crosswalk Collective’s work has not been in vain, as it has shamed the city into installing (wimpy, ugly, ineffective) slow streets features at the site of the collective’s first crosswalks at the intersection of Romaine Street and Serrano Avenue. The L.A. City Transportation Department (LADOT) social media self-congratulations seemed to go out of their way to not acknowledge this, terming the neighborhood as just Hollywood instead of East Hollywood. Close!
The city’s permanent slow streets program seems to be installing just enough to look busy, while avoiding any features that would actually prevent cars from speeding down neighborhood streets (which the city is reluctant to do except where it will keep the riffraff out of well-off white neighborhoods).
Pasadena’s New Pedestrian Scramble
The city of Pasadena has a new pedestrian scramble intersection (the kind that allow pedestrians their own phase to cross diagonally) at Fair Oaks Avenue and Colorado Boulevard, nearby a couple other Old Town scrambles. ActiveSGV shared some beautiful aerial photos by Ernest Lee.
LADOT Seeking Input on Downtown L.A. Mobility Investments
Give L.A. feedback on a brand new “DTLA Mobility Investment Plan (MIP)” which includes Chinatown. Go to the interactive mapping page and make comments and suggestions.
It sounds like just another plan to keep shelves full and consultants fed… but SBLA will try kicking that football again, Lucy. Hmmm? Other than actually implementing the city’s Mobility Plan there, how about losing some dangerous slip lanes, and maybe adding council-approved Cedillo-blocked bike lanes on the Spring Street Bridge?
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