Supes Look to Ban Hazardous Materials on 154

This is a very important step that needs to be taken to improve public safety for those who travel on or live near the Highway 154 corridor.

As the most recent head-on collision near San Marcos Pass resulting in multiple fatalities/maimings clearly indicates, Caltrans
must-- at long last-- place median dividers on certain stretches of this sometimes dangerous winding road.

It is past time for the County to demand that Caltrans remedy the extremely hazardous conditions that Caltrans has created by poor roadway design and engineering and that it has for far too long allowed to persist.

It really makes me mad to witness the continuing carnage that poor Caltrans traffic safety planning is causing to families in and visitors to our community. In the face of this continuing carnage it is more than maddening to know that Caltrans is still trying to move forward with its $4,000,000 to divert suicidal people from the Cold Spring Bridge to other places in the community.

Hopefully, newly serving Assemblyman Williams can help to make Caltrans change its ways and to undo some of the serious mischief caused in these respects by his predecessor, Nada,

What makes 154 dangerous is not the design of the roadway, which has been improved steadily since the 1950s, when it was known as Hwy 150. Rather, it is the poor drivers that increasingly use it to either commute from the north county or visit the gambling casino near Solvang. There are the speeders, and then there are the v e r y s l o w drivers, who have yet to discover what a steering wheel is for, and are terrified by a simple curve. These slow ones invariably do *not* pull over in the so-called "passing" lanes - indeed, they are oblivious to any other drivers on the roadway. Instead, they see the two lane sections as an invitation to tromp on the gas, only braking down to their previous sub-limit speeds when the extra lane ends.

In Europe, these are seen as equally dangerous to the speeders, and are inflicted with large fines for not yielding to faster traffic.

To : Nada,

CalTrans is NOT to blame...

There is safety regulations they must follow when making median dividers, that there is distance from the lanes and there is shoulder requirements.
Following these rules would cost CalTrans more than $100,000,000 I am sure because they would have to MOVE mountains literally, or at least encroach on current mountains to meet their safty requirements.

Secondly, as I commented in the other thread. If you put suicide barriers at at Cold Springs Bridge, then the jumpers will go other places.

How about putting a suicide prevention hotline at both sides of the bridge where people can call and be directly connected to the national suicide prevention hot line.

Call Trans can install these at almost EVERY bridge higher than 25 feet fro $4,000,000 in SB County.

To : SamRedDog:

We have restriction for impeeding the flow of traffic .... HP should be sent a letter requesting that they better ENFORCE this , I completely agree with you!