Editor,
As the mother of two young daughters living in Laguna Beach, I was disturbed to read of another pedestrian collision in the police blog. Yet I was equally disturbed by the misleading language used in describing the traffic incident on Sept. 30, which said the pedestrian was crossing Coast Highway just north of Bluebird Canyon “without the benefit of a crosswalk.”
Let’s call a spade a spade.
Anyone using the intersection at Coast Highway and Bluebird Canyon can see there is a clearly marked crosswalk less than 25 yards away, on the south side of Coast Highway with the benefit of a traffic signal. Had the pedestrian used the crosswalk and waited for the walk signal, instead of running into oncoming traffic across a double yellow line, this collision would have been avoided altogether.
For the city’s efforts to make Laguna a pedestrian-safe place to live and visit, it needs to be a joint effort between drivers and pedestrians, observing the tools put in place to ensure the safety of both. Noticeably absent from the news report was a statement of whether the city assessed the pedestrian a jaywalking fine.
Shannon Trevino, Laguna Beach
Well put! Thanks you!