Another SCV highway death

By Jeff — Jeff Wilson

In commenting on the death of the Sheriff’s Deputy, someone in the forum asked why it seems there are so many accidents on McBean Parkway. My feelings:

You have a basic fact of life in this city, a glaring hypocrisy that was ripped wide open for the world to see during the Decoro blow-up

SCV Drivers want everyone else to slow down, but they themselves want to go as fast as possible. They see everyone else as speeding traffic, but never look at themselves.

Really, all the evidence bears this truth out. Every time the Sheriff’s Station does an enforcement sweep in a neighborhood, they find the majority of speeders are residents of the area. Every time the city does something to calm traffic based on resident’s complaints, the same residents raise hell.

McBean, Valencia, Soledad- these aren’t city streets. They are highways with few intersections, stoplights or reasons to slow down. And so we should expect that deaths on these highways will continue to happen (just as they do on I-5 and Highway 14) as long as people want to go super fast.

Comments (7)

lvogelApril 30, 2010 at 3:01 pm

I don’t know Jeff; I have lived off of McBean for over 20 years (just before the hospital, past Singing Hills) and it took our community YEARS working with the city to get a light put in. We had so many accidents at our intersection and our children crossed there to get to Meadows Elementary. Their solution was to put a light up at Singing Hills. However, when cars proceed to go down that hill when it turned green (remember this is often FREEWAY traffic) they speed! It’s a 45 mile per hour zone (too fast if you ask me) and many travel 55 miles per hour. Not a whole lot of time to slow down. The city finally put in a light for us and thankfully the accidents have been minimal as of late. I will say this also, with the additional MOB’s being planned for the small footage of land at the hospital (G&L property!), it will only get worse and the city will have to really do some major changes to the traffic flow/speed!

ReaderMamaApril 30, 2010 at 4:18 pm

I agree. Everyone speeds, and if you don’t stay up with the “traffic flow,” they zoom around you, just like they do on the freeway.

Need for Involved CitizenryMay 1, 2010 at 6:10 am

Need more enforcement Citywide. Most deputies view traffic stops as non-productive but a many arrests for warrants, drug busts, unlicensed or suspended license folks are nailed for traffic violations. The Sheriffs need to be more active. We’ve had a speeding issue on one of the main residential streets going thru our neighborhood. Residents, guests, landscapers, contractors, utility trucks, etc speed on the street. We tried to work with the City to put in speed control measures like other cities have but they are not interested (politically speaking) with the current council (McLean, Ferry and likely Ender don’t really want any mitigations that could “slow down” traffic flow. So we are left with enforcement. It has been a challenge to get Sgt. Cohen at the SCV station to be responsive with assigning deputies. But lately, we’ve had a deputy in the afternoons and evenings that has been very busy and active. A neighbor told me one of her friends a couple of blocks away had gotten 2 tickets in 2 weeks. Nice! I appreciate the enforcement because I’m a bike rider and there are no sidewalks in our area so folks walk in the street. Having cars zoom by at 40+ is just not safe or pleasant. It is a wonder no one has been killed – but there have been some pretty serious accidents. More Enforcement Please since the City doesn’t want to impose physical approaches to slowing traffic.

BrianMay 1, 2010 at 12:39 pm

I don’t know if its the speed as much as the multi-tasking driver. How much longer will we allow eating, cell talking or texting, drinking, yelling at the kids, smoking and more while driving? Many are marginal drivers on a good day, then you toss in the distractions. I was just thinking of the Drive-Ins with the car hops. A ‘to go’ order was for home, not driving. We actually took the time to eat while parked. GASP!!! Let’s ticket the distracted since they are as dangerous as a drunk!

JeffMay 1, 2010 at 2:08 pm

Look, accidents will happen, regardless of cause. But it’s the speed that kills people. If you’re texting and drinking a soda at 30 mph and you rear end someone, no one dies. If you’re doing the same thing at 60mph and you rear in someone, the coroner gets called.

NateMay 3, 2010 at 2:39 pm

I agree!

GeorgeMay 3, 2010 at 8:53 pm

I know Jeff very well. Our families a very close, and I was devastated to find of his demise tonight from a close friend. My god, we just celebrated a newborn last summer! Jeff was a great person, one that every person envies as a friend. A very friendly and peaceful person, this community has a great loss at the local level. I live right off the intersection where he gave his life, and I had no idea until today, I am heart broken for our loss. So what happened? A 19 year old, with no idea of his mortality, has taken a daddy from his children forever! I see it every day; speed does not realize its consequences. I could not live with the idea that I was responsible for taking a life, less ripping it from a family and a child that will never know its father. I have never lived in an area where there is such a great disregard for the human condition. And, the result is such a great tragedy. I can’t describe the loss I feel for Jeff, and yet, it pales to what his family is feeling at this moment. This is not a racetrack, it is a community. But no one realizes what is being paid for the rush of a California life. We are NOT Los Angeles, but a little community that is suppose to be a better place to live. I’ve seen traffic runn the Mariel Way traffic light many times, my own spouse could have given her life more than I can count on my hands. I hope the Jeff’s sacrifice brings focus to what is happening in the community that I’m living in. If this city doesn’t slow down and become responsible, we’re heading to a lot more fatalities …

lvogelApril 30, 2010 at 3:01 pm
I don’t know Jeff; I have lived off of McBean for over 20 years (just before the hospital, past Singing Hills) and it took our community YEARS working with the city to get a light put in. We had so many accidents at our intersection and our children crossed there to get to Meadows Elementary. Their solution was to put a light up at Singing Hills. However, when cars proceed to go down that hill when it turned green (remember this is often FREEWAY traffic) they speed! It’s a 45 mile per hour zone (too fast if you ask me) and many travel 55 miles per hour. Not a whole lot of time to slow down. The city finally put in a light for us and thankfully the accidents have been minimal as of late. I will say this also, with the additional MOB’s being planned for the small footage of land at the hospital (G&L property!), it will only get worse and the city will have to really do some major changes to the traffic flow/speed!
ReaderMamaApril 30, 2010 at 4:18 pm
I agree. Everyone speeds, and if you don’t stay up with the “traffic flow,” they zoom around you, just like they do on the freeway.
Need for Involved CitizenryMay 1, 2010 at 6:10 am
Need more enforcement Citywide. Most deputies view traffic stops as non-productive but a many arrests for warrants, drug busts, unlicensed or suspended license folks are nailed for traffic violations. The Sheriffs need to be more active. We’ve had a speeding issue on one of the main residential streets going thru our neighborhood. Residents, guests, landscapers, contractors, utility trucks, etc speed on the street. We tried to work with the City to put in speed control measures like other cities have but they are not interested (politically speaking) with the current council (McLean, Ferry and likely Ender don’t really want any mitigations that could “slow down” traffic flow. So we are left with enforcement. It has been a challenge to get Sgt. Cohen at the SCV station to be responsive with assigning deputies. But lately, we’ve had a deputy in the afternoons and evenings that has been very busy and active. A neighbor told me one of her friends a couple of blocks away had gotten 2 tickets in 2 weeks. Nice! I appreciate the enforcement because I’m a bike rider and there are no sidewalks in our area so folks walk in the street. Having cars zoom by at 40+ is just not safe or pleasant. It is a wonder no one has been killed – but there have been some pretty serious accidents. More Enforcement Please since the City doesn’t want to impose physical approaches to slowing traffic.
BrianMay 1, 2010 at 12:39 pm
I don’t know if its the speed as much as the multi-tasking driver. How much longer will we allow eating, cell talking or texting, drinking, yelling at the kids, smoking and more while driving? Many are marginal drivers on a good day, then you toss in the distractions. I was just thinking of the Drive-Ins with the car hops. A ‘to go’ order was for home, not driving. We actually took the time to eat while parked. GASP!!! Let’s ticket the distracted since they are as dangerous as a drunk!
JeffMay 1, 2010 at 2:08 pm
Look, accidents will happen, regardless of cause. But it’s the speed that kills people. If you’re texting and drinking a soda at 30 mph and you rear end someone, no one dies. If you’re doing the same thing at 60mph and you rear in someone, the coroner gets called.
NateMay 3, 2010 at 2:39 pm
I agree!
GeorgeMay 3, 2010 at 8:53 pm
I know Jeff very well. Our families a very close, and I was devastated to find of his demise tonight from a close friend. My god, we just celebrated a newborn last summer! Jeff was a great person, one that every person envies as a friend. A very friendly and peaceful person, this community has a great loss at the local level. I live right off the intersection where he gave his life, and I had no idea until today, I am heart broken for our loss. So what happened? A 19 year old, with no idea of his mortality, has taken a daddy from his children forever! I see it every day; speed does not realize its consequences. I could not live with the idea that I was responsible for taking a life, less ripping it from a family and a child that will never know its father. I have never lived in an area where there is such a great disregard for the human condition. And, the result is such a great tragedy. I can’t describe the loss I feel for Jeff, and yet, it pales to what his family is feeling at this moment. This is not a racetrack, it is a community. But no one realizes what is being paid for the rush of a California life. We are NOT Los Angeles, but a little community that is suppose to be a better place to live. I’ve seen traffic runn the Mariel Way traffic light many times, my own spouse could have given her life more than I can count on my hands. I hope the Jeff’s sacrifice brings focus to what is happening in the community that I’m living in. If this city doesn’t slow down and become responsible, we’re heading to a lot more fatalities …