Another nail in the coffin of “small-town feel.”
I live just off Riverside Drive, between Olive Avenue and Bob Hope Drive, in an area known as the West Rancho.
This section of roadway is often referred to as Riverside Raceway, and now we are heading toward giving it a little more validity with a projected raising of the speed limit. How much? Not much, just 5 mph, going from 30 to 35 mph, no big deal right? Wrong!
First, I’d like to point out that this has been at 30 mph for as long as I’ve lived here, which is 17 years, so if it works, don’t fix it, right? Nope, not in this city’s eyes. Somehow there is an equation that if 85% of the users are over the speed limit, then a street qualifies for a possible speed limit change.
OK, everyone does 5 to 10 mph over on the freeway, so should the state raise the limit from 65 to 75 mph? It’s basically the exact same argument.
I mean, people see a posted limit and know that there is generally a little built-in leeway with enforcement of the law, so they creep up and over by a few miles-per-hour. Acceptable, but if the limit is raised, won’t people just nudge up a little more? Umm, yes!
Now this is where it gets tricky due to the nature of this section of road. There is a big sweeping curve at Niagra Street, making this much different than say, Alameda Avenue, another 35 mph road. Alameda is also wider.
There are no bike paths, and this is one of the most bicycle-commuted roads in Burbank. Do any cyclists feel safe on this section? Hell no; it’s treacherous, to say the least.
As you ride along this stretch, cars move over to avoid the bikers, or come close enough to scare the the cyclist. Add in the monument in the center of the street at Bob Hope Drive and it gets even more menacing.
Other factors the city needs to think about is, will it still be safe to exit our side streets due to the lack of length in the Riverside Drive parking red zones? Will cars traveling on Riverside have a safe distance to stop should a car coming off a side street not see them?
Is the city only thinking about the lost revenue from tossed tickets? Most importantly, is the city concerned for the safety of the cyclists and runners that use Riverside Drive for both commuting and pleasure?
There will be presentation at 6 p.m. Tuesday to the City Council from city traffic engineers requesting that the limit be raised. We should all be there to voice our concerns.
ROBERT BEHER
Burbank
