New diagonal crosswalk installed in Montrose

There’s a new dimension to walking around in Montrose — diagonally.

One of the neighborhood’s most popular intersections, Honolulu Avenue and Oceanview Boulevard, has a new diagonal crosswalk to let pedestrians walk safely from one corner of the intersection, criss-crossing to the other corner when all lights at the intersection are red.

For example, pedestrians can cross from the southwest corner to the northeast corner at the intersection.

Glendale’s Public Works Department installed the new crosswalk this week and reprogrammed the traffic lights so they would all be red when it’s time for people to cross.

This is the second intersection in the community to get a diagonal crosswalk, the first being at Brand Boulevard and Harvard Street, right by the Americana at Brand.

Public Works Director Roubik Golanian said Honolulu and Oceanview was a favorable candidate because of its already-established walkability.

“The nature of that area, it’s pedestrian friendly and we wanted to make it a more pedestrian-friendly destination,” he said.

Joselito’s Mexican Restaurant is just down the street from the intersection, and owner Corey Grijalva, a former board member of the Montrose Shopping Park Assn., said the board has been pushing to have a diagonal crosswalk installed for several years.

“We’ve been asking Glendale for a while to do it and they finally did it,” he said. “I think it’s a great addition to Montrose. It brings us up to date with Pasadena and Brand [Boulevard]. … I think they just chose the exact right place to do it.”

Grijalva added the crosswalk is more for the benefit of pedestrians than local businesses, especially for those nights with good weather.

The intersection was also chosen because it doesn’t get much vehicular traffic, Golanian said.

“Another reason we picked this intersection was because the speed is slow and the volume is low, so it would not create a huge long backup,” he said.

Speaking from his experience commuting along Honolulu, Grijalva said the extra minute or so that cars will spend stopped at Honolulu and Oceanview may help reduce the number of vehicles backing up as they head eastbound at Montrose Avenue and where Honolulu turns into Verdugo Boulevard.

Golanian said there aren’t any plans in the pipeline for more diagonal crosswalks, but the city and local police will monitor the progress of the newest one in Montrose.