Driver’s Inconvenience, Traffic Engineer’s Headache

Dear Street Smart:

At the intersection of Somis Road and California 118 in Somis, drivers in westbound traffic must sit and look at a red light for the entire time that the eastbound traffic zips by with a green light.

I know the traffic turning right down Somis Road from west to south can back up at times, but the intersection is usually clear and those able to reach the through traffic lane shouldn’t have to sit for no reason.

Can something be done about this?

E.T. Wall, Somis

Dear Reader:

Tsk tsk, E.T. Wall.

Faithful Street Smart readers know this very question was tackled right here three months ago.

Here’s an update of that response.

Nestled in the scenic farm country west of Moorpark, this congested intersection has created quite a few headaches for the traffic experts at Caltrans.

The problem is the short 120-foot left-turn lane, which is used by many cars and trucks that are moving south from California 118 toward Camarillo. The pocket only has room for five passenger cars. Large trucks devour an even greater share of the space.

If the left-turn traffic were stopped by a red light, but other cars could continue moving straight ahead, Caltrans fears that the turning pocket would quickly fill up and spill out into the straight-ahead lane.

This would block cars trying to move straight ahead, which could lead to lots of nasty horn-honking.

The jam-up could also block cars trying to turn onto the 118 from Donlon Road, just east of this intersection.

The bottom line, says Peter Wong, a Caltrans traffic engineer, is that the present left-turn sequence is the best way to keep the left-turn traffic moving at the same pace as the straight-ahead traffic, even if it does inconvenience a few westbound motorists.

Caltrans traffic engineer Bob Houle says the volume of traffic going left is much greater than the volume going straight, so it’s more important to keep the left-turning drivers happy.

Houle adds that the county is now considering relieving the problem by realigning Donlon Road to form a more traditional four-way intersection.

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Dear Street Smart:

About a year ago the intersection of Thousand Oaks Boulevard and Westlake Boulevard developed an ambiguous lane.

If you are southbound on Westlake, at the intersection of Thousand Oaks, you will see what appears to be a curb lane, sort of.

It seems narrow, but it is not marked as a bicycle lane. But it is not marked “Right turn only,” either.

This causes some people to presume they have a lane available for through travel, right onto the on-ramp for the Ventura Freeway. But drivers in the lane to the immediate left think the ramp lane belongs to them. I have seen several near-accidents because of the confusion.

Just what is this runt of a lane? Are there any plans to clarify it with a sign? I think it would be a benefit to all of us using this intersection.

Michael Hawkins, Camarillo

Dear Reader:

This “runt of a lane,” meant both for bicycles and cars that are turning right, will soon be marked to guide motorists, says Thousand Oaks Public Works Director John Clement.

Confusion about the purpose of the lane, he says, is understandable.

That’s because: 1.) There are no markings telling travelers just what the lane is for, and 2.) There are four lanes north of the intersection and only three lanes south of the intersection.

So drivers just assume, mistakenly, the bike/right-turn lane is a fourth through-lane.

Clement says right turn lanes are not always marked and it’s common for bike lanes to be unmarked at intersections (“Bicyclists are smart,” Clement says, “They know where they’re supposed to go.”)

Nonetheless, the city is planning to paint right-turn arrows in the lane to guide befuddled motorists.

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Dear Street Smart:

We have lived on Los Padres Drive in Thousand Oaks for 13 years with only one way in and out--Moorpark Road under the Ventura Freeway.

How long must we wait for a secondary exit road out of this area? The problem creates a hazard for everyone. Earthquakes and fires are a number-one concern here.

A signal that was installed last year helps the traffic flow smoothly most of the time.

However, any crisis or unusual event causes a complete road block.

During the recent fire, which burned very close to my neighborhood, I attempted to get home. Traffic on Moorpark Road, my only access, was completely backed up.

When I finally got into the neighborhood, I faced the same problem trying to get out.

Is there any hope of a secondary exit?

Kathy DiTullio, Thousand Oaks

Dear Reader:

Yes, there is hope, but it may be a while in coming to fruition.

The long-term plan is to make Rolling Oaks Drive a second through-road by extending it to meet Rancho Road, says Thousand Oaks Public Works Director John Clement.

But, he says, it has been difficult to get approval to pave the short section that needs to be filled in between the two roads.

That’s because the residential Rancho Road now ends in a cul-de-sac and residents are loath to surrender the peaceful side street for a through-road roaring with speeding traffic.

Despite neighbor resistance, the Rolling Oaks-Rancho Road connection is the area’s only hope. “It’s the only thing that makes any sense,” Clement says.

The Thousand Oaks General Plan Review Committee is currently studying such quandaries and should release its findings sometime early next year.