I called a few months ago before the school year was out in
regards to my concerns over the Luchessa Bridge.
Mom outraged over lack of progress on luchessa bridge
I called a few months ago before the school year was out in regards to my concerns over the Luchessa Bridge. Since the new Las Animas school was built, my son now needs to cross that bridge on his way home from school. I WILL NOT let him walk to school in the morning because traffic is RIDICULOUS and DANGEROUS!! Aside from regular vehicles, there are school buses, transit buses, deisels – just extremely large vehicles in an area where there is an EXTREMELY MINIMAL and DANGEROUS bike lane which also is only on one side of the bridge.
Most drivers seem as if they could care less about their safety. It’s so frustrating!!! Drivers don’t even wait their turns at the three-way stops (on both sides of the bridge) and it’s only a matter of time before someone is hit.
Prior to the school being built, safety was still an issue. We also have people who walk/run the levy daily. I am one of those people. That is what brought this to my attention so long ago. I would cross the bridge with my son to see the progress of his school being built as well as to take the hidden back way to Christmas Hill to work out.
I’m so upset about it that if something happens to my child (or myself for that matter) while crossing the Luchessa Bridge, I will sue the damn city at this point!!
Red Phone:
Dear Angry Parent: You might need to add another defendant to the mix. Red Phone contacted Gilroy Traffic Engineer Don Dey, who explained that the responsibility for fixing the problems created by adding the new school is that of the developer – in this case the Gilroy Unified School District. When the new Las Animas School was planned, GUSD agreed to “enviromental mitigations” – engineering-speak for constructing roadway improvements to offset the impact from increased pedistrian and automobile traffic created by adding a new school to the area. One of those improvements was a signal light at Luchessa Avenue and Thomas Road, Dey said. He said he hopes it gets constructed by August of next year, prior to the beginning of the new school year.
Basically, the developer does the design and the city checks to ensure it meets standards, Dey said. Since the school district paid the city fees that pay for the upgrades, the district would be reimbursed for signal and bridge costs. “We are working on the design portion to see if we can provide pedistrian improvements along the bridge,” Dey said. “Some people think ‘Well, city, cant you make them do this and that?’ No, but its a cooperative effort, there’s nothing the city can do, but when the signal improvements are done, there will include some level of pedistrian improvements on the bridge.”
In the meantime, dear caller, Red Phone hopes you and your daughter remain safe.
