A Sign of the Problem May Be Drivers Who Ignore Signs

Dear Street Smart:

At La Veta Avenue and Parker Street, there is no apparent reason why it is not legal to stay on Parker and cross La Veta. Overhead signs and lanes painted on Parker indicate either a right or left turn only.

Furthermore, there are no arrows on the lights to reinforce this, only the standard red, yellow and green lights. This is a dangerous situation when someone decides to ignore the signs and lanes and drive straight ahead on Parker in front of someone turning left.

Last and perhaps the least, being able to cross La Veta heading south is the shortest route to the Garden Grove Freeway heading east.

George Ferch

Santa Ana

About six years ago, the residents who lived on and near Parker Street north of La Veta Avenue asked the city of Orange to deter the hordes of drivers who used their neighborhood as a shortcut to nearby shopping and businesses. At that time, up to 7,000 cars a day were traveling through the neighborhood when it should have been more like 1,500, said Chuck Glass, a traffic engineer for Orange.

In response, the city formed a committee and conducted a study to see what could be done to alleviate the traffic, Glass said. Eliminating the through traffic on Parker Street was decided on, and the City Council approved it.

Glass says that if drivers ignore the overhead signs and lane markings on Parker Street and drive straight ahead, you probably can’t get them to obey any other signs.

Because directional signals here are not required by Caltrans design standards, which the city follows, there are no plans to install them, he said.

Dear Street Smart:

More than a year ago, Street Smart responded to a complaint about the absence of operating street lights at 17th Street and the Costa Mesa Freeway in Santa Ana/Tustin. (No one seems to be sure who owns that piece of ground).

Your response at that time was they would be turned on again after the construction work was completed.

You were correct with the exception of one light; the light directly over the southbound on-ramp.

It has everything a street light should have, including a new number, MH 1173. Everything that is, except light. It is also one of the most important lights in the area because it lights an important intersection, or would if it were turned on.

Would you please do what you can to make our intersection bright again? Failing that, could you please tell me when we can expect “the light that failed” to recover?

Mike Harris

Orange

That light won’t recover until August, 1997, when construction between Fairhaven Avenue and 17th Street is completed.

The construction is part of the Costa Mesa Freeway Improvement Project scheduled to start this June and include replacing three bridges and improving the lighting on each of the freeway interchanges, Caltrans spokeswoman Rose Orem said.

That light was built when the on-ramp was built in 1962, Orem said. With age, the light’s wiring has worn out, she said.

To repair it would require tearing up portions of 17th Street and the freeway on-ramp, she said. Caltrans felt it would be more cost effective to postpone repairs and coordinate them with the new construction project, Orem said.

Dear Street Smart:

The intersection of Jamboree and Fairchild roads in the city of Irvine is a constant problem for me, as I am sure it is for many other people who work in or near the Brinderson Towers in Irvine. The stoplight turning left onto Fairchild from Jamboree stays red for approximately three to five minutes every day during the workweek.

This occasionally makes me late for work. Sometimes I see people going through the light because they get tired of waiting for it to turn green. It does not even turn green if there is no oncoming traffic either way.

This is very annoying to me, and also many other people, I am sure. I would appreciate any help you could offer me.

Colette Fatton

Lake Forest

On the strength of your letter, the city of Irvine’s traffic staff did check the signal timing at Jamboree and Fairchild roads during the morning commute period.

City traffic engineer Conrad Lapinski apologizes for the wait you experience, but says the signal’s timing won’t be changed.

The maximum wait for a southbound left turn from Jamboree Road is two minutes, and the minimum wait is 15 seconds, he said.

The city also conducted a random survey of cars making that turn during the morning rush hour. It found the average wait is 90 seconds, Lapinski said.

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, CA 92626. Include your full name, address and day and evening phone numbers. Letters may be edited, and no anonymous letters will be accepted.