Rail-Crossing Repair a Case for Wheeling and Dealing

Dear Street Smart:

I am a cyclist who regularly commutes to work by bicycle, in addition to recreational cycling.

There is a railroad crossing on Bristol Road near the lemon packing plant that has always been quite a challenge to cross safely. The crossing not only requires a cyclist to cross the tracks out in the automobile traffic lane, but it also requires a tremendous amount of care to avoid having a wheel become trapped alongside one of the rails or getting damaged due to roughness.

There has been a recent attempt to make the transition smoother for motor traffic, but no attention was given to cycling across the tracks.

The same tracks also pass through Johnson Drive and Montgomery and Petit avenues. These intersections have now all been upgraded two times, with the most recent improvements being of excellent quality.

I would like to see the same type of improvement made to this crossing. Are there any plans to improve this railroad crossing? If so, when?

George Bushno

Ventura

Dear Reader:

Public works officials in Ventura County, who oversee the railroad crossing you are concerned about, said that usually such repairs are made by the railroad company at the county’s request.

But this particular crossing is unusual. It is part of the Santa Paula Branch Line, which was purchased last year by the Ventura County Transportation Commission.

“Normally, we get the railroad to do it, but this one’s owned by the Ventura County Transportation Commission, which isn’t us,” Britt said. “But we decided we didn’t want to wait forever.”

The other repairs you described were made by Ventura city public works crews.

The county transit agency has plans to repair and upgrade the whole 30 miles of track it purchased last fall. But unfortunately, it will be several years before those projects are funded.

You might try lobbying commission members at their next public meeting. The panel meets the first Friday of every month at Camarillo City Hall.

Dear Street Smart:

We live on a street that’s an accident waiting to happen. It’s a miracle that we haven’t killed a child or an adult yet.

Alta Vista Road in Simi Valley is an uphill winding road. There are no garages on it, so everyone parks on the street.

This is one of the older neighborhoods in Simi Valley and these streets used to be dirt trails, so there are no setback requirements. There was no code in effect when these small cottages were built.

What can the county do to prevent a loss of life and limb, because it’s going to happen. There are several blind curves on the street, and it’s very, very steep. There are no parking restrictions on either side.

Roy Kuljian

Simi Valley

Dear Reader:

As public servants are wont to point out, they don’t make the rules, they merely enforce them.

Butch Britt of the Ventura County Public Works Department is no exception.

“It’s legal to park on a public road as long as you get out of the traffic lane,” he said. “You can’t stick into the road.”

Britt said he is familiar with your neighborhood, which is an unincorporated area just outside the Simi Valley city limits, and has heard this concern expressed several times during the past few years. But the only way to effect change is to lobby your county supervisor.

“Changing the parking laws takes an action of the board,” Britt said. “So the best they [residents] could do is to take a petition around the neighborhood. But then they’d have nowhere to park and we’d get an avalanche of complaints.”

Dear Street Smart:

On the Lynn Road onramp northbound to the Ventura Freeway, I have seen so many accidents occur, and unfortunately, was just involved in one myself.

I have always noticed that there is no green arrow for the traffic that is getting onto the freeway at that spot.

Not only is it a hazard because there is so much southbound traffic coming at you from Lynn Road, there is also traffic at your right that is exiting the freeway making a left turn in front of you.

I would like to know if this is something that can or will be corrected in the future. Thank you for your column.

Kris Lopez

Thousand Oaks

Dear Reader:

Unfortunately, the short answer is no.

Traffic engineers from the state Department of Transportation say that the signals along that stretch of Lynn Road are synchronized to provide the most efficient flow of cars.

“Traffic signals for both the northbound and southbound ramps are interconnected and running on a fixed-time cycle,” Caltrans spokeswoman Pat Reid said.

“The signal sequence is set up so northbound motorists who want to turn left onto the northbound Route 101 onramp must yield to southbound Lynn Road traffic,” she said.

The volume of traffic on northbound Lynn Road turning left onto the northbound freeway onramp does not warrant a separate left-turn green arrow at this time, Caltrans engineers concluded.

But they pledged to monitor the situation for changes in traffic patterns.

Write to Street Smart, The Times Ventura County Edition, 93 S. Chestnut St., Ventura 93001. You may enclose a simple sketch if it will help Street Smart understand your traffic questions. Or call our Sound Off Line, 653-7546. Whether writing or calling, include your full name, address, and day and evening phone numbers. No anonymous queries will be accepted, and letters are subject to editing.