The vote ended a Public Works Department study comparing the potential traffic and safety impacts of changing the two existing two-way streets into two one-way streets, assistant director of traffic engineering Ken Johnson said.
Residents spoke out en masse against the study, arguing that a Chandler conversion would increase the speed of traffic ? posing hazardous conditions for Chandler bike-path users ? and result in complicated and indirect travel routes for residents.
"We are closing the page on the one-way operation, but we will still look at it from time to time on an ongoing basis to make it as safe as possible," Johnson said.
Safety monitoring will focus on major signaled crossings along Chandler, like the Buena Vista Street and the Hollywood Way intersections, Johnson said. With the city of Los Angeles extending its own bike path into Burbank, protecting the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists is crucial, he said.
"Now that city of L.A. has connected the path to ours, we really expect use of the bike path to increase significantly," Johnson said.
The path now extends to the Redline station in North Hollywood, and there are plans to stretch it to Warner Ranch in the San Fernando Valley ? into downtown Burbank and south into Glendale.
Councilmember Jef Vander Borght presented the motion to bring the item up for a vote, calling it a fitting gesture, in light of the fact that he was a strong proponent of the Chandler one-way study.
Johnson maintained throughout the study that Chandler was a relatively safe street, unlikely to be drastically altered by modifying the traffic flow.
