Crews Respond as Quickly as Possible to Flood of Calls

With that atmospheric tantrum known by all as El Nino in mid-rage right now, I’m thankful I’m not on a public works crew.

Seeing those crews standing knee-deep in water at some flooded intersection makes me thankful I’m sitting in my warm, dry car headed to some warm, dry place.

I can’t think of a more frustrating job during one of the rainiest seasons on record than having to shovel out mud and tree branches from a storm drain, knowing you’ll be back after tomorrow’s rain to do the same thing.

There are probably a lot of times during their 16-to-18-hour days that those roads crews think the battle is futile.

“We’ve just been opening streets to see them get flooded again,” said Butch Britt, deputy Ventura County public works director. “It’s been pretty hard on all of us.”

After weeks of this rainy slop, Britt has the tired, weary voice of a laborer who has exhausted himself in a valiant, thankless effort.

Yet with 80 road maintenance workers and 544 miles of county road to care for, it takes time to reach all the problem areas.

More than a few residents, while understandably frustrated with the pool of water in their frontyard or a slick of mud covering their driveway, point a finger at those same workers, as if they were responsible.

Understand, they’re working harder than many would even imagine. While you’re there worrying about yourself and your family, they’re worrying about all 750,000 county residents who might be victims of El Nino’s drenching wrath.

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Dear Street Smart:

I am concerned about a serious mud flow that occurred last Saturday night on our street, San Fernando Avenue, after the heavy rains.

For three days, I tried to get the county on the phone to clean up our street, but I either got a busy signal or was put on hold.

I understand that the county has abandoned us here in La Conchita, because in their opinion it sits on an ancient landslide not worth fixing.

These are public streets and it is up to the county to see to this problem and clean them.

Philomena Elsass, La Conchita

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Dear Reader:

Let me begin by saying that county crews have definitely not “abandoned” the community of La Conchita. Personally, I have seen more dump trucks and orange hard hats there than just about anywhere.

Britt said they have been working between 15 to 18 hours a day for the last three weeks without so much as a day off. So give them a break.

These people have been shuttling from communities like yours in La Conchita to others in the county’s remote hinterlands, making sure all this water finds its way to the ocean and not into someone’s living room.

In your letter you said you tried to alert the county for three days, but kept getting a busy signal or were put on hold. Did you ever wait to talk with someone?

Despite all the work crews must do because of the rain and to prepare for future storms, they say they are averaging a half-day to respond to complaints and to clear streets.

As far as La Conchita is concerned, Britt said the neighborhood is one of the most difficult to care for because it has no drainage systems.

If mud covers a road, crews can only push it off to the side and wait until it dries before clearing it away.

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Dear Street Smart:

I am terribly disturbed by the way decisions are made regarding the installation of traffic lights at dangerous intersections.

I am, along with I’m sure many other drivers in Thousand Oaks, concerned with the intersection at Pederson and Olsen roads. This is an extremely dangerous intersection.

A driver approaching Olsen Road from Pederson and wanting to cross the street or make a turn can’t see traffic coming from the intersection of Moorpark and Olsen roads.

To do either, a driver takes his life into his own hands.

Ironically, a half-mile up the road at the intersection of Olsen Road and Sunset Hills Boulevard is a traffic signal, but Sunset Hills dead-ends on Olsen, and drivers can see traffic clearly.

I don’t understand the logic, and I hope it is not going to take a fatal accident at this intersection before a light is installed.

Fred Severo, Thousand Oaks

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Dear Reader:

I have good news that should quell your fear when trying to do anything with your car at the intersection of Olsen and Pederson roads.

A stop light will be up and running by the end of the year, said Robert Sweeting, an engineering technician with the city of Thousand Oaks, and it’s being put up for the same reasons you cited in your letter.

But for a little lesson on traffic lights and their placement, here’s a primer.

Cities in Ventura County rely on state warrants to justify the placement of everything from speed humps to road signs to traffic lights.

For traffic lights, there are about a dozen different standards that can be used to erect one, including traffic volume, accidents and pedestrian frequency.

The intersection you mention met several criteria, including volume and traffic interruption--meaning that people traveling from Pederson onto Olsen had to wait an inordinate amount of time.

The stop light was approved by the City Council on Jan. 6, and city engineers are still drawing up the plans. The project should be completed by late December or January of next year.