Drivers Must Exercise Caution When Exiting Athletic Club

Dear Street Smart:

The intersection at the Erringer Road off-ramp from westbound Simi Valley Freeway is confusing since the Oakridge Athletic Club shares its driveway with the intersection, but they don’t seem to have a light facing them.

I was a member there previously and I remember being confused as to when to enter that intersection--certainly not on the red, but they never really get a green light either.

So if I’m a motorist exiting the freeway, how do I share the intersection with someone leaving the Oakridge Athletic Club parking lot? And who has the right of way?

It sounds like an accident there would be a real nightmare for the insurance companies.

Judi Scheibel, Simi Valley

Dear Reader:

The straightforward answer to your question is that you do not share the intersection with anyone. Rather, Simi Valley traffic officials say, you have the right of way.

“When it was put in over 20 years ago, it was state policy not to have traffic signal indications for private driveways,” said Bill Golubics, who is in charge of traffic circulation in Simi Valley.

“That’s still the situation today,” he said. “Traffic entering the intersection from the freeway ramp is controlled by the signal, but traffic entering the intersection via the racquet club must yield.”

Golubics said he is not aware of any accident pattern at that intersection that would warrant any change.

“It’s really not unsafe,” he said. “But what it does is put the burden of safely entering the intersection squarely on the person leaving the racquet club.”

By the way, the freeway intersection at Tapo Canyon Road is similarly designed.

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Dear Street Smart:

I live on Creek Road, a street that is developing into an unofficial bypass for California 33 in Ojai.

Several stoplights have been installed on California 33--all needed. But drivers wishing to reduce drive time head down my street with increasing frequency after each new signal is added.

Increased usage is bad enough, but most drivers using my street as a shortcut are in a hurry, so speed limits that are already excessive are rarely observed.

A lower speed limit would deter many drivers from using this road and make it safer for those of us who live here. What can concerned citizens do about changing speed limits?

Lisa Meeker, Ojai

Dear Reader:

There is little a resident can do about drivers using a street as a shortcut, said Butch Britt, the Ventura County deputy director of public works.

In fact, Creek Road is considered a “collector street” for California 33, meaning that it was designed to accommodate some overflow from the busy highway, Britt said.

“Everybody uses it as a bypass,” he said. “You can’t control human nature.”

As for lowering the speed limit, Britt said such limits are generally based on typical traffic patterns; that is, the average speed of most of the motorists using a given road at a given time.

“It depends on the constraints of the law and what’s safe for the motorists,” he said. “But if it’s an enforcement problem, we notify the Highway Patrol.”

Nonetheless, Britt said his office would review speed and traffic conditions along Creek Road based on your inquiry.

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Dear Street Smart:

The street signal at Royal Avenue and Crocker Street in Simi Valley has been changed from cross-street sensing to a one- or two-minute cycle time to accommodate arriving and departing students at nearby Royal High School.

This causes unnecessary delays for commuters during non-school hours.

The delays could be eliminated by having the signal use cross-street sensing during non-school hours. This would eliminate the unnecessary stops and wasted gasoline.

Tom Benecke, Thousand Oaks

Dear Reader:

Traffic officials are quite familiar with your complaint. They’ve been hearing it for months, ever since they began a repaving job on Royal Avenue.

The signal at Royal Avenue and Crocker Street, and several others along Royal Avenue, were taken off the automatic sensors when contractors began the repaving job this past summer, said traffic analyst Bill Golubics.

“Normally, the signals rest in green for the major streets, and as soon as someone comes in on the cross street the signal is triggered,” he said.

“But they’ve been cut off due to construction activity, and because they’re broken, the signal now cycles back and forth on a time clock basis,” he said.

Exacerbating the problem is the ongoing asphalt workers strike, which has slowed projects all around Ventura County. Contractors in Simi Valley are getting fed up, and are preparing to use non-union crews, Golubics said.

“They’re planning on getting going later this month,” he said. “But it’s a four-mile project, so it will take several weeks to finish the paving.”