Santa Ana to Ticket Pedestrians Who Use Medians to Cross

The Santa Ana City Council on Monday night approved an ordinance that would allow police officers to give tickets to pedestrians who are standing on street medians, clarifying jaywalking laws.

The Police Department proposed the law last month to help cut the high numbers of people who are hit by cars.

The City Council approved the ordinance 5 to 0, with Mayor Miguel A. Pulido Jr. and Councilman Thomas E. Lutz absent.

“This law will be a big change for people in the community,” Councilwoman Patricia A. McGuigan said. “It will be illegal to cross those medians, and this will help us expand on our pedestrian safety program.”

Until the ordinance becomes law upon a second reading at a City Council meeting later this month, police officers will issue warnings to pedestrians standing on the medians, Police Chief Paul M. Walters said.

Noting that most pedestrians are hit by cars in the middle of blocks, police pushed the measure to discourage residents from using medians as an alternative to using crosswalks or controlled intersections.

Although no one spoke for or against the proposal Monday night, some people have said they would ignore the law.

The ordinance is the latest in a series of moves meant to reduce pedestrian accidents in Santa Ana. Earlier this year, the city launched a public education campaign and a major enforcement effort targeting jaywalkers and motorists.

It’s too early to tell if the efforts are helping to reduce injuries. So far this year, six pedestrians have lost their lives, the same total recorded for all of 1998.

As in most cities, medians are used in Santa Ana to improve traffic flow, reduce accident rates and beautify streets. But pedestrians often view the medians as places of refuge while crossing wide, traffic-clogged roadways, authorities say.

Pedestrians commonly walk across three lanes of traffic, wait in the median for traffic to clear and then proceed to the other side of the road. Raised medians pose special hazards, police say. Because most of them are landscaped with grass, trees and shrubs, motorists often cannot see if pedestrians are about to cross. Earlier this year, a man was killed on 17th Street after stepping onto the street from a raised median. About 15 miles of raised medians have been installed in recent years on several busy streets, including portions of West 1st Street and 17th Street.