@metrolosangeles closes sidewalk that accesses Metro @LosAngelesWalks @csaillant2 @palmsdepot @PaulKoretzCD5 (1/2) pic.twitter.com/k2cAG0iKFN
— topomodesto (@topomodesto) August 8, 2014
The city's piss-poor sidewalk policies are not just affecting Downtowners living in the midst of a construction boom, it's also a major pain in the ass near the Expo Line's Culver City station. As the Expo Construction Authority rebuilds Venice Boulevard (after it was torn up to build the elevated bridge that will carry trains to Santa Monica for Expo's extension), commuters are being forced to cross Venice Boulevard twice just to get to the train, Streetsblog points out. Even worse, signage is super-confusing, bus drivers don't know where to pick people up, and pedestrians are forced to wait several minutes for the walk signal across freeway-like Venice.
The south side of Venice, which people use to get to the train, is closed now at Venice and Culver boulevards. People have to cross north at the west side of the intersection, wait for a traffic light in front of a shopping center, walk east, then cross south to access the train. One sign on the east side of Venice and Culver indicates people should cross there, while another across the boulevard states the opposite. Expo spokesperson Gabrielle Collins tells Curbed someone moved the signs without permission.
"The sidewalk on the south side of Venice Boulevard needs to be closed between Culver Boulevard and Robertson Boulevard in order to complete the street widening and related improvements," she says. "The approved pedestrian detour directs pedestrians to the north side of Venice Boulevard via the crosswalk on the west side of Culver Boulevard. The sign was initially placed correctly to detour pedestrians west across Culver, and was likely moved by a pedestrian trying to cut across the closed sidewalk. The sign has been moved back to its original location."
There will be six more weeks of this mess. During that time, Collins says the Construction Authority will tell Metro and the other transit providers that people, including lots of tourists who take the train and then the bus to the beach, don't know where to catch the bus.
Maybe if the city insisted the Authority open up the south side of the sidewalk to pedestrians, instead of catering to drivers, people wouldn't be racing across Venice to catch trains and creating a scary situation. There's something horribly wrong with the city if sidewalks can't be open near a rapid transit station.
· Eyes on the Street: Faulty Pedestrian Detour at Expo Phase 2 Construction [Streetsblog]
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