Overcrowded Streets Offer No Room to Yield
“Fire Engine Limits Set†(Aug. 19), subsequent letters and “Curbing the Obstructionists†(editorial, Aug. 27), on the L.A. Fire Department setting speed limits for emergency vehicles, overlook a major reason why motorists don’t yield: They often have no place to do so. This is definitely a problem on major thoroughfares that now carry more traffic than they were originally designed for, such as Cahuenga Boulevard, the route used by emergency vehicles leaving the Hollywood fire station, and residential streets in the older parts of the city, which are lined with parked cars and have few driveways into which a car can pull. This needs to be considered before ticketing drivers who cannot get out of the way or are unable to do so fast enough to not slow emergency vehicles.
Rick Mitchell
Los Angeles
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