A new striped crosswalk will be painted at the intersection of Lincoln Boulevard and Rose Avenue in Venice to improve pedestrian safety.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa unveiled the new cross walk design on Monday at Spring and Fifth streets in downtown Los Angeles. In the next three months, 53 crosswalks will be painted at busy intersections throughout the city that will feature a two-foot wide yellow or white painted stripes and a stop-line near the curb to prevent drivers from encroaching on a pedestrian’s space.
“Los Angeles is in the midst of a transportation renaissance,” said Mayor Villaraigosa in a statement. “We are doubling the size of our rail network, making improvements to traffic flow and adding new bikeways. But we need to ensure that no one gets left behind. This focus on pedestrian safety is part of our efforts to create a 21st century transportation network that works for everyone.”
The majority of the new crosswalks are near transit lines that have seen a higher number of vehicle-pedestrian collisions compared to other intersections in Los Angeles.
The average crosswalk will cost $2,500 and Measure R funds set aside for pedestrian improvements are funding the project.
The city will also launch an educational campaign advertising on billboards, bus shelters and bus panels to alert motorists of the new changes. This campaign is one of the first for Los Angeles’ new pedestrian coordinators hired earlier this year to improve walkability.
"Los Angeles is a city of walkers and this is an important first step in making sure pedestrians across the city are safer during their travels,"Margot Ocañas, the city’s first pedestrian coordinator said in a statement. "The new crosswalks make a clear statement that our streets belong to everyone and that we should be safe when sharing the road."
The new crosswalk design will be applied to all new transit and development projects in L.A. and will be gradually implemented across all city crosswalks.
