Red Phone: Come to a complete stop at lights

“Every morning I drive south on Monterey Road. And every morning there are several cars turning south onto Monterey from Luchessa Avenue that think that they do not have to stop at the red light before turning right. There have been several incidents where I have had to slam on my brakes or swerve around them. Is it possible to get an officer out there and monitor that intersection in the mornings?”

Red Phone: Dear Safety Conscious, This area sometimes can be problematic especially in the morning when a lot of people are getting off the freeway. Cars are coming off the freeway and many are still in that freeway-speed mentality. It is indeed important to make sure to come to a full and complete stop before turning. Pulling out quickly trying to beat the oncoming vehicle is a sure way to cause an accident. Red Phone passed on your request to the Gilroy Police Department.

“Gilroy PD is actively working to educate drivers and improve traffic safety,” said Gilroy Police Sgt. Chad Gallacinao. “As indicated in prior Dispatch articles and PD media releases, the department takes safety seriously and continues to obtain traffic related grants, facilitate DUI checkpoints, deploy extra DUI saturation officers and assign officers to traffic safety at our local schools.” 

He encouraged community members with traffic related complaints to report them to the police department either via the department’s webpage at cityofgilroy.org or by contacting Traffic Sgt. Kurt Ashley at 846-0521 or Ku*********@ci**********.org.  

“Traffic complaints will be prioritized and the areas monitored by the department’s motor officers,” Gallacinao said.