Venti-sized skepticism turns to hopes for safer streets near Fresno’s Woodward Park
Crossing Friant Road on foot Thursday to hear Fresno city leaders unveil their plan to make the streets around Woodward Park safer for pedestrians and cyclists, I carried an iced coffee and a venti-sized reservoir of skepticism.
Both were nearly drained by the time I left.
What started out as a citizen-led gathering in remembrance of road traffic victims had been commandeered by Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer along with City Councilmembers Mike Karbassi and Garry Bredefeld — a development that instantly tripped my skepticism meter.
Plus, barely three weeks had passed since I lent my voice to this very issue. What could Fresno’s electeds and staff come up with in three weeks to address a problem they’ve largely ignored for decades?
Turns out, quite a bit. Enough for a skeptic to be pleasantly surprised.
Some of the remedies Dyer, Karbassi and Bredefeld spoke about and committed to will happen right away or over the next several months. (City crews were installing reflective tape to the backplates of nearby traffic signals as they spoke.) Others will require years.
When finished, they won’t make pedestrian and cyclist access to Woodward Park from Friant and Audubon Drive completely safe. But crossing those streets will be less hazardous — provided the new measures aren’t ignored by Fresno motorists.
“It was good to see some immediate action being taken, but a lot of this is up to the drivers to listen,” said Matthew Woodward, a member of the city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission. “Changing people’s habits is going to require a longer-term investment.”
Woodward said he was pleasantly surprised to hear Dyer announce that right-hand turns onto Friant during red lights will soon be prohibited from westbound Shepherd Avenue, Fort Washington Drive, Champlain Drive, Copper Avenue and Copper River Drive. (The notorious intersection at Friant and Audubon, which I believe to be the best location for an overpass or underpass, will require further study.)
Two other noteworthy changes include giving pedestrians and cyclists a 5-to-7-second head start at certain intersections while moving back vehicle limit lines so they’re 10 feet away from crosswalks. Both measures will add safety and visibility.
Takes a tragedy to get results
However, Woodward and others weren’t as enthusiastic about a proposed parking lot on the west side of Friant Road, accessible from the Fort Washington entrance, meant for Eaton Trail users. This lot would be free, allowing people to avoid the $5 per car park entrance fee.
“People are still going to be crossing (Friant) either way,” said Woodward, possibly in reference to my iced coffee, “and I can see that space where the parking lot is supposed to go being used for something else.”
Since many of these remedies aren’t cost prohibitive, there’s really no good excuse for why city leaders didn’t take these steps sooner. After all, it’s not as if road safety around Woodward Park is a new problem. Unfortunately, as Dyer admitted Thursday, it often takes a tragedy such as the Jan. 12 death of Paul Moore to get people like himself to pay attention.
Which has to rank among the most honest answers to ever escape a politician’s mouth.
On Friday afternoon, Dyer was scheduled to join two other city councilmembers (Nelson Esparza and Tyler Maxwell) along Shields Avenue for the official groundbreaking of the Midtown Trail — a much-needed cycling and pedestrian improvement project in central Fresno that has taken nearly six years to get off the ground.
Bottom line: The distance between the promises our elected officials make and when they’re actually delivered becomes a yawning chasm far too often.
It’s up to all of us to hold them accountable. Bang the drum loudly enough, and you never know what might happen.
