LIFE ON THE FAST LANE : Some Fear the Worst if Racing on a Fullerton Street Isn’t Stopped

Riverside Drive, the sloping and winding street that attracts drag-racers at night and other speeders during the day, has become known as “Dead Man’s Curve.”

In July, Michael Ballman, 19, who lived on the street, died there when he lost control of his car and smashed into a tree while drag-racing with friends, police reported. Only a few months earlier, Ballman’s younger brother, Danny, 18, crashed his car into another tree across the street. He was unharmed.

A dog crossing the street suffered a broken jaw when it was hit last year by a speeding car. Another dog was hit and dragged down the street two years ago, dying 15 minutes after the accident. Cats also have been hit and maimed or killed.

Residents who live on the tree-lined street say they want the city to install a barrier that would halt future speeding as a way to cut down on accidents.

Al Triay, who moved into his home on Riverside Drive in 1961, said he and his neighbors fear that children are not safe on the street.

“Closing the street is the only thing that can be done to stop the speeding and the loss of lives,” said Triay, who is leading the effort to get a barrier erected. “It would be a shame if a child got killed.”

The street, which is about three-quarters of a mile long and stretches from Dorothy Lane to Raymond Avenue, used to end at Riedel Avenue, now the halfway point between Dorothy and Raymond. But the street was lengthened when a developer chopped down the orange trees on the west side of Riedel and built homes in the 1950s.

Residents claim that speeding problems began after the street was extended.

In 1994, Triay and about 80 neighbors asked the city for help and got stop signs put on both ends of the street. In addition, double yellow lines were painted down the middle of the street and reflectors and rumble strips were installed.

Things haven’t changed much, however.

“Our street has become a grand prix,” said Darlene Zivich, a 14-year Riverside homeowner who is helping circulate a petition asking the city to split the street in half.

She said she constantly calls police to report drag-racers. “We hear them racing late at night all the time,” Zivich said, adding that she’s afraid a speeding motorist will one day lose control and end up plowing into her living room.

Zivich and others say their street is especially vulnerable at night. Because cars are not allowed to park on the street overnight, the two-lane road is clear for speeders.

Drivers going over the 25 mph speed limit are common during the day as well, said Larry Shackleton, whose home sits behind the magnolia tree that Danny Ballman crashed into before spinning and ending up on a lawn.

“These curves here are an accident waiting to happen,” he said. “I’ve been hit here just turning into my own driveway.”

Police and city traffic engineers agree there is a speeding problem on Riverside. How to fix it is still under study, said Bob Hodson, Fullerton’s director of engineering.

He said the city is conducting traffic counts on the street and clocking speeds to determine whether to turn the street into a cul-de-sac.

After the studies are complete, the Fullerton Transportation and Circulation Commission would hold a public hearing and decide what to do. Should it vote in favor of the cul-de-sac, Hodson said, a temporary concrete barrier would be installed to test its effectiveness.

If it seems to work, traffic officials would recommend a permanent barrier for approval by the City Council, he said.

Hodson said the issue is expected to be heard by the commission next month.

Meanwhile, he said, police have stepped up patrols in the area and have been citing speeding motorists. Also, a trailer with a radar gun has been placed on the street so drivers can see how fast they’re traveling.

Some residents oppose closing the street.

Shirley Elliott, who is one of the 83 homeowners on Riverside, said she would prefer to have stop signs erected. “If that didn’t work, then I think there should be an electronic gate that emergency vehicles could open to get through,” she said. Elliott said neighbors on adjoining streets have expressed concerns over increased traffic on their streets if access is cut off on Riverside.

City officials say all options will be considered.

Bob MacLean, who has lived on Riverside for 43 years, recently stood on the sidewalk with neighbors, commenting on their “dangerous street.”

“There’s an awful lot of potential for accidents from speeding or reckless driving,” he said. “Cars like to cut through here to get to the universities and the high school.”

In the last 20 years, a speeding car smashed into the car of MacLean’s son and another vehicle ran over his dog and broke its leg. “A child could be next,” he warned.