Walker Safety Funds Sought

Santa Ana officials said Thursday that they have run out of money to expand their effort to reduce the city’s high pedestrian accident rate, and they asked state legislators for help.

Their plea came at the Assembly Transportation Committee’s first hearing on pedestrian safety, which state officials have vowed to make a priority.

Officials said they need more money to hire officers, expand educational programs and make street improvements. Lt. Felix Osuna, head of the Santa Ana Police Department’s traffic bureau, said the department has concluded that the best way to reduce pedestrian accidents is through better education, not increased enforcement of traffic laws.

“We can write tickets all day,� he said, “but the bottom line is that we have motorists and pedestrians who just elect to ignore laws.�

Assemblyman Lou Correa (D-Anaheim), who called the hearing, did not promise more financing but said he will continue to seek solutions. “I’m not satisfied leaving things as they are,� he said. But “throwing money at the problem,� he said, is not the answer.

The legislative committee invited Mayor Miguel A. Pulido Jr. and council members to the hearing, but none attended, said Jay Barkman, Correa’s legislative assistant. Their absence led some residents to question whether the city’s leadership is committed to improving the situation.

“Pedestrian safety has to be a priority at the local level, but I don’t think the political will is there,� said Michele Morrisey, a community activist who attended the hearing. “I think it’s shameful.� Pulido did not return calls seeking comment.

Santa Ana has the highest pedestrian death rate in Southern California. A school district study earlier this year found that nearly half the city’s pedestrian accidents involved children walking near campuses.

Gloria Ohland, a spokeswoman for the Surface Transportation Policy Project, a nonprofit pedestrian safety group, criticized some of the city’s recent actions.

She told lawmakers that a decision to remove 40 crosswalks and a new law banning pedestrians from using raised medians have made streets even more dangerous for people on foot. She said the city should redesign streets and add devices such as speed bumps to encourage drivers to slow down.

Public Works Director George Alvarez ruled out major street redesigns, however, saying they would be impractical for an established city like Santa Ana. He said any state funds would go toward reconstructing sidewalks and adding traffic signals at six problem intersections, projects that would cost an estimated $2 million.