OAKLAND — About a month after a woman was killed and her 4-year-old niece was injured in a hit-and-run accident in a marked crosswalk outside Garfield Elementary School, the city installed a barrier in the left-turn lane to prevent another tragedy at the notoriously dangerous intersection.
The barrier, which consists of a rubber curb and vertical plastic poles, runs parallel to the left-turn lane, and forces drivers to slow down and not cut the corner as they turn. The city also will install a pedestrian safety island in the middle of Foothill Boulevard at Munson Way just east of the 22nd Avenue intersection.
The newly installed barrier, which the city’s transportation department calls a “hardened centerline,” is the first of its kind in Oakland. It was piloted in New York City last year.
“Our department was formed to provide the safest possible streets for every person in Oakland, especially those who are most reliant on walking and public transit to get around,” said Oakland Department of Transportation director Ryan Russo. “This typically includes our low-income communities, communities of color, seniors, people with disabilities and children. Innovative responses like these are how we will deliver on this important responsibility, as we challenge ourselves to do better for Oaklanders and transform streets in a matter of weeks, rather than years.”
Garfield Elementary parents, teachers and students say drivers rushing the left turn at the intersection of Foothill Boulevard and 22nd Avenue is nothing new. That portion of Foothill Boulevard is a magnet for unsafe driving: There’s a half-mile gap between traffic lights at 23rd Avenue and 29th Avenue, and drivers often speed, sometimes to bypass the traffic on International Boulevard. In April, 6-year-old Angel Garcia and his mother, Alma Vasquez, were killed in a hit-and-run accident on 26th Avenue and Foothill — just four blocks from Garfield Elementary.
The city has made some other safety improvements along that portion of Foothill: Signs saying “school,” “school speed limit,” “fines double” and “left turn yield to pedestrians” signs were posted between 21st and 24th avenues, as well as speed humps and corresponding warning signs.
The city also plans to install a left-turn signal on the traffic light on 22nd and Foothill, and program the light to give pedestrians crossing the street a head-start against drivers.