Torrent of Car v. Bike Crashes Prompts Police Crack-Down

Santa Monica may be one of the most traffic-calmed cities in the United States, but there have been 874 injury or fatal crashes involving pedestrians and bicyclists in Santa Monica in the past three years, and police plan a crackdown.

The city police have noticed an uptick in crashes, despite citywide efforts to slow traffic, build crosswalks, and install bike lanes and safety signage.

On Friday and then on three days in early June, police will be looking at several locations where pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers frequently smack into each other, said Lt. Richard Lewis at the Santa Monica police department.

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK IN THE COMMENTS: Why have there been so many accidents between drivers and bicyclists in Santa Monica?

Bikers, walkers and motorists are equal opportunity offenders in the bayside city, he said.

“Special attention will be directed toward drivers speeding, making illegal turns, failing to stop for signs and signals, failing to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, and similar violations,” he said.

But pedestrians and bicyclists are also frequent offenders, he added. “Bike riders will be stopped and citations issued where they fail to follow the same traffic laws that apply to motorists,” Lewis warned.

Additionally, pedestrians who jaywalk or fail to yield to cars that have the right of way will be ticketed, the lieutenant warned.

The first of four operations, beginning Friday, will focus on enforcing violations. The other crackdowns will be in the following week: June 1, June 3, and June 5.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is funding the concentrated enforcement, through the California Office of Traffic Safety.

OTHER PATCH HEADLINES

• Holiday Fatalities, DUI Arrests Way Down in LA County
• Man Throws Himself in Front of Slow Speed Chase Led by a DUI Suspect in ‘Parade’ Convertible
• Bomb Squad Removes Suspicious Item from Chatsworth Parking Lot
• Scammers Claim to Kidnap Children, Demand Ransom, RPV Police Warn
• Naked Man Tries to Snatch Baby at Graduation Ceremony, Police Say
• Armed Woman Surrenders After Marathon Standoff in Topanga

City News Service

Get Patched in! Sign up for free news alerts for your town.

AGOURA HILLS | BELMONT SHORE-NAPLES|BEVERLY HILLS | BRENTWOOD | CALABASAS| CERRITOS-ARTESIA | CULVER CITY | HERMOSA BEACH | HOLLYWOOD | LONG BEACH | MALIBU | MANHATTAN BEACH | MARINA DEL REY | NORTH HOLLYWOOD-TOLUCA LAKE | NORTHRIDGE-CHATSWORTH | PACIFIC PALISADES |PALOS VERDES | REDONDO BEACH | SANTA MONICA |SHERMAN OAKS | STUDIO CITY | VENICE-MAR VISTA | WEST HOLLYWOOD | WESTWOOD-CENTURY CITY |WOODLAND HILLS