Anyone who has been out on foot at the intersection of State and De la Vina streets knows this place needs help.
“If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it,” I’ve heard some people say. I submit that it is indeed broken, and has been broken for such a long time that some of us have come to think it is normal. It is not.
The alignment allows motorists to turn from State onto De la Vina at a speed of about 35 mph, according to speed surveys. This “free” right turn is ill-suited for an urban environment and presents a clear danger to a variety of other road users, such as:
» Pedestrians. Try continuing straight on State Street and you will find that a steady stream of right-turning vehicles won’t let you. Or worse, try crossing in the crosswalk at Samarkand and De la Vina. You will be at great risk of being hit, as there is not enough sight distance for a car turning the corner at 35 mph to stop.
» Bicyclists. If you try going straight on State Street, you are in danger of being “hooked” by fast-moving, right-turning vehicles that often don’t signal their intention. To bicyclists, this is one of the most harrowing intersections in all of Santa Barbara.
» Cars. Drivers turning in and out of Samarkand Drive at De la Vina are at risk of being broadsided, as, again, there is not enough sight distance to stop.
You may ask, “Why have there not been more accidents, if this is so dangerous?”
While, for a long time, most of the traffic was through traffic, this has changed. There is a coffee house on the east side of the intersection. This most welcome addition to the neighborhood generates considerable foot traffic in the crosswalk. There is a Trader Joe’s store on the other side. Many people cross the street holding shopping bags. There are now bike lanes on outer State Street, luring more bicyclists.
In short, while this intersection was rather barren before, designed to move cars through as quickly as possible, it now has become a place in its own right, a destination where people want to be. At times, urban life grows in the most unlikely places, like those intrepid tree saplings that grow seemingly out of sheer rock. This still tentative urban regeneration is something we want to nurture so it can take root and flourish.
Let’s provide the street environment needed to make it safe and pleasurable for people to be there. In the end, life in this neighborhood — and this city — will be richer and better for it.
Eva Inbar represents Santa Barbara Walks, a project of the Coalition for Sustainable Transportation.