Road Too Narrow to Allow Parking as Well as Sidewalks

Dear Street Smart:

I live with my family on Los Feliz Drive in Thousand Oaks. When I first bought my house here in 1990, I was told that the last five or six feet of my property were to be used by the city for “sidewalk improvement.”

Now that I have kids and we like to take walks, I’m anxious for this so-called sidewalk. Without it, we are walking on the side of the road and are in danger of being hit by cars.

Is there any way I can get the city moving on this?

We are only two blocks from an elementary school, and while there are sidewalks in front of the school, they stop and start on different sides and in different areas along the street.

Additionally, there are no street lights on the street, which makes walking at night very treacherous.

Thomas Sherren

Thousand Oaks

Dear Reader:

According to city engineers, your street is only about 40 feet wide, so there is not enough room for both sidewalks and street-side parking.

“Apparently, at one time there may have been right-of-way dedication for sidewalks,” said Tom Pizza, an engineering department manager for the city of Thousand Oaks

“Sidewalks could possibly be constructed there, but the street would have to be posted ‘No Parking,’ ” he said.

More bad news: Thousand Oaks is not inclined to make paying for new sidewalks a priority.

Pizza said your neighborhood is several decades old and was built before city officials began requiring such amenities as sidewalks and street lamps.

Although installing sidewalks on your street appears to be a long shot, street lamps could happen if the majority of your neighbors agree to chip in for them.

That’s called a benefit assessment district, which would collect the money each year to build and maintain the service. Developers of many newer neighborhoods are required to form such a district before they begin construction.

*

Dear Street Smart:

Your May 13 column indicated that excessively long vehicles cannot negotiate the paper-clip turns on certain parts of California 23 and California 150, yet Caltrans is not allowed to ban trucks on state highways according to length.

Using simple logic, that means those two roads are not legal state highways; the curves are too sharp for legitimate vehicles. What about the short cars that get pushed off the road?

Caltrans is now going to put up warning signs? I guess the signs will say “Unsafe Highway!”

Michael L. Pershing

Thousand Oaks

Dear Reader:

Indeed, state highway officials have heard for years that the curves on several portions of state routes 23 and 150 are not safe for drivers who are forced to share the road with 18-wheelers or multiple-axle rigs.

The reason Caltrans officials took more than a month to answer the most recent question about these two highways is that the issue became the subject of top-level meetings between Caltrans and several state legislators.

By the way, the signs, which will warn of trucks crossing the center line when making narrow turns, are scheduled to be installed by summer.

The bottom line? Not much difference from the answer given earlier this year. According to Pat Reid, a Caltrans spokeswoman, the department is not allowed to prohibit those trucks from the two highways.

The best solution? Drive defensively and watch out.

*

Dear Street Smart:

I have noticed that when I am out walking with my baby, pushing a stroller, that very few curbs in the Texas tract [in north Simi Valley] have handicapped access. It is difficult to push a baby stroller up and down curbs without ramps.

I called the city of Simi Valley last year on three occasions. Each time they told me the city was planning the improvements, but nobody knew when they would be out to finish the curbs in my neighborhood.

Can you find out when they plan to come out and finish the curbs? It would sure make our walks more enjoyable.

Terese Gilman

Simi Valley

Dear Reader:

The issue of handicap access along most residential streets is a relatively new one, says Bill Golubics, traffic engineer for the city of Simi Valley.

That means that builders and city planners were not as sensitive to installing the ramps when streets and sidewalks were being laid out in past decades.

“The city has installed some handicap ramps citywide when federal funding became available,” Golubics said. “But that funding has now been exhausted, so we’re not planning any new ramps at this time.”

Golubics said that intermittently, when federal grants become available, planners try to improve the streets and sidewalks closest to those roads used most often by pedestrians. That explains why the ramps have been built near schools in your neighborhood.

“If additional funds become available, we will be able to expand those areas beyond the schools, and we would consider the Texas tract neighborhood at that time,” Golubics said.

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.