Possible Left-Turn Arrows on Harbor Subject of Fullerton Study

Dear Street Smart:

Why are there no left-turn arrows for a two-mile stretch of Harbor Boulevard between Berkeley and Orangethorpe avenues in Fullerton? There is talk of removing our beautiful trees to make longer left-turn lanes on two of the less traveled streets in the area.

If left-turn arrows were installed at Chapman and Commonwealth avenues, the problem would be solved and I wouldn’t be left deciding which of the corners to make my potentially dangerous left turn.

Florence Scheremp

Fullerton

This particular stretch of Harbor Boulevard is part of a transportation study being conducted by Fullerton’s redevelopment department. There is no set date for when this study will be completed and the city’s traffic engineering department will take no action until it has reviewed the study’s recommendations.

However, your very concerns about the removal of the trees and the need for safe left-turn opportunities between Berkeley and Orangethorpe avenues will be discussed at a public meeting next month of the Downtown Planning Committee. The committee will meet from 7 to 9 p.m. July 11 at the Fullerton Senior Multi-Service Center, 340 W. Commonwealth Ave.

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Dear Street Smart:

I was wondering if Caltrans will be repainting the bike lane on Paseo de Valencia in Laguna Hills. The street markings are very faded.

Also, as I ride my bike on that path or as I drive by in my car, I notice quite a few drivers using the bike lane as a lane for cars, especially around Leisure World. This seems dangerous to me.

Is it possible to add reflector dots or another type of barrier to the bike lane to prevent cars from using it as another traffic lane?

Carmen Vali

Aliso Viejo

Paseo de Valencia is in the jurisdiction of Laguna Hills and Orange County, so these agencies are responsible for road maintenance there. Ken Rosenfield, city engineer for Laguna Hills, said bike lane markings are painted twice a year as a matter of course and right now the process of touching up faded lanes throughout the city is in full swing.

Rosenfield liked your suggestion that something be done to aid the painted striping that delineates bike lanes but thinks reflective markers or Botts Dots may pose a problem. Reflective markers normally are used to delineate another traffic lane and motorists might become confused, thinking that the reflective markers mean there is another lane for their use, he said.

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Dear Street Smart:

About a year and a half ago, Coast Highway was resurfaced between Nyes Place and 10th Street in South Laguna. However, the stretch between 10th Street and Three Arch Bay was left unpaved.

There are many potholes, cracks and bumps on this stretch due to previous utility underground construction. When will that span be repaved?

Christian Cooper

South Laguna

The Southern California Water District has plans to install a new pipeline on Coast Highway in Laguna Beach between 10th Street and Three Arch Bay, Rose Orem of the California Department of Transportation said. This construction project will require lane closures on Coast Highway, Orem said.

As a measure to avoid summer traffic congestion, Caltrans limits work done on Coast Highway that would require lane closures, Orem said. Therefore, this work will not begin until mid-September and should be completed within 30 days, she said.

After the water project is completed, Caltrans will begin a project to resurface the roadway in the area, Orem said. Until then, Caltrans will continue to patch and seal the surface, she said.

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For those of you who ride the bus or are considering trying it, you’ll be happy to know that the Orange County Transportation Authority was recently acknowledged for its safety record in a national competition. OCTA was named a finalist and awarded the Certificate of Achievement by the American Public Transit Assn. in the 1993 Silver Award competition for bus safety.

The 110 transit systems that entered the competition were ranked by variables such as weather, population, total number of bus vehicle miles operated, and general traffic conditions of the service area.

Street Smart appears Mondays in The Times Orange County Edition. Readers are invited to submit comments and questions about traffic, commuting and what makes it difficult to get around in Orange County. Include simple sketches if helpful. Letters may be published in upcoming columns. Please write to Caroline Lemke, c/o Street Smart, The Times Orange County, P.O. Box 2008, Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626. Include your full name, address and day and evening phone numbers. Letters may be edited, and no anonymous letters will be accepted.