City needs movement on traffic issues

I like the idea of a “task force” to address the various traffic issues the city faces ? whether they be parking or traffic circulation. Clearly, there are too many issues regarding traffic that have negatively impacted our citizens and visitors that have not been prioritized.

Laguna can no longer be in a game of catch-up, we need to anticipate the problems before all the negatives overtake us. Anyone who thinks this is where it’s going to end is truly out of touch.

In the last six to eight years the growth of Orange County has been explosive and the density will only get worse. We need to see our traffic and parking solutions as critical. Our situation now is the result of not aggressively addressing the concerns of our citizens regarding traffic issues, whether they be parking or driving, until the 11th hour.

I have lived in North Laguna for 42 years ? 16 years as a property-owning summer resident starting in 1964. Yes, it was an idyllic town with no traffic problems.

The last 26 years I have witnessed the incredible growth of the areas that surround us and the resulting pressures that have come to bear on parking in my North Laguna neighborhood and in getting around and through the city. Yes, it is a city and not a village.

We are facing all the issues regarding parking and traffic of any city or urban area. I’ve spent some time studying traffic and parking issues in other communities that are similar to ours and I think we need to look at some of their solutions.

The important thing is there are solutions. We don’t have to accept the status quo and the inevitable worsening of our quality of life due to traffic problems.

I believe experience is a good thing, but more often, I find that new players have a vision and new ideas. Most importantly, they have an energy and desire to get things done. Do I think we need a task force? Yes, yesterday.

We need to have a comprehensive plan to deal with the problems of parking and traffic in our city, not just for today, but for the future.

The people on this committee, or task force, must be committed and prepared to do the hard work in coming up with the solutions and to making them a reality.