From an email by Paul Tonelli to Athertonians:
At the heart of this problem is the decision made years ago to widen ECR to three lanes. In effect this decision has made ECR an expressway through our town where speeds in excess of 50 mph are not uncommon.
Being that ECR is actually State Route 82, I imagine it would take an act of a budget paralyzed legislature to get anything done. In my more than 13 years as an Atherton resident I have always imagined an El Camino with 2 lanes of traffic in each direction with a pedestrian walkway / bike lane in the curb lane. Said curb lane could be nicely landscaped and protected with some sort of decorative barrier that both provides separation from traffic while being appealing to the eye.
Within the first couple of months of relocating to Atherton in '97 an elderly man and his wife were literally run down while crossing ECR near Selby Ave. In that case the driver was estimated to be travelling at nearly 60 mph. NOTHING has changed in 13 years. We continue to live with what amounts to a mile long freeway right outside our front yards. It's obvious we aren't safe even when using the crosswalks.
While I would love to provide a solution, I don't know what can be done, nor do I have any idea how to go about generating any kind of change. What I do know is that there definitely will be more tragic incidents, as in the case of Christopher Chandler, until something is done.
Paul Tonelli
From message sent by Berna Davis (not posted to Athertonians):
ReplyDeleteHi Paul,
Thank you for your comments. I am a brisk walker and I
cannot cross El Camino Real within the allotted time that
"walk" is indicated. Where does that leave parents with
children and a multitude of others?
Berna Davis
From message sent by RIck DeGolia (not posted to Athertonians):
ReplyDeleteI agree with Paul that the third lane on ECR is a problem
and encourages speeding (which definitely occurs on the two
lane portion also); however, it looks like this tragedy
occurred southbound, where there are only two lanes. I know
that Atherton Ave and the other lesser parallel streets are
heavily monitored for speeding, I don't know that the police
dept pays as close attention to ECR, which I consider to be
a greater problem.
From Jim Massey (not posted to Athertonians email list):
ReplyDeletePaul. You are so right re: ECR The 3 lanes and slope on
sides has also created the flooding problems. Back to two
lanes. Jim Massey
From message sent by Steve Dostart (not posted to Athertonians email list):
ReplyDeletePaul,
As a private citizen and also as a representative of the private development community, I am a task force member of the Grand Boulevard Initiative. ( http://www.grandboulevard.net/)
The GBI is looking at how to make the El Camino Real, which runs all the way from San Jose to San Francisco (The Alameda/El Camino/Mission), a more people-friendly place amongst other goals. The level of cooperation amongst all the various agencies that govern the route, (Cal Trans, Sam Trans, VTA, Caltrain, etc. ) and all the cities alongside it, has been nearly miraculous.
It’s my understanding that the Town of Atherton has so far opted out of being officially involved because of the lack of any businesses on the El Camino within our town. The points you are making below about making it more people-friendly might be a good reason for the town to consider officially getting involved.
Best regards,
Steve Dostart