New York and Michigan recently passed laws allowing local jurisdictions to lower speed limits, and Los Angeles voters backed safer road designs, but enforcement often meets political resistance. The number of pedestrians killed or injured on the road remains high.
María Rivas Cruz looks through a scrapbook of memories from her more than a decade-long relationship with Raymond Olivares, who died last year after being struck by a speeding car. The photo she holds shows them celebrating buying a house together.In these challenging times, the need for reliable local reporting has never been greater. Put a value on the impact of our year-round coverage. Help us continue to highlight LA stories, hold the powerful accountable, and amplify community voices.
María Rivas Cruz survived being struck by a car in southeastern Los Angeles while crossing the street in 2023 with her fiancé, Raymond Olivares, who died at the scene.A memorial for Raymond Olivares outside his Los Angeles home. Olivares was fatally struck by a car while crossing the street in front of his home last year.In the aftermath of the February 2023 crash, the county installed protective steel posts midway across the street.
“We are not showing the political will to use the proven safety tools that exist,” said Leah Shahum, founder ofThe need for safer roads took on urgency during the covid pandemic. Fatalities rose even as lockdown mandates emptied streets., more than 42,500 people died on American roads, and at least 7,522 pedestrians were fatally struck — the highest tally of pedestrian deaths in more than four decades.Experts cite several reasons for the decline in road safety.
But the Federal Highway Administration wrote in a statement that while the 85th percentile is the typical method, engineers rarely rely solely on this rule. It also noted that states and some local agencies have their own criteria for setting speed limits. “The federal government has the biggest punch when it comes to requiring improved vehicle safety design,” said Wiener, the California state lawmaker.that would require Caltrans, the state transportation agency, to make improvements such as adding crosswalks and curb extensions on state-owned surface streets to better serve pedestrians, cyclists, and transit users.
It’s been more than a year since the crash, but Rivas Cruz finds reminders everywhere: in the mirror, when she looks at the scars left on her face after several surgeries. When she walks on the street that still lacks the infrastructure that would have protected her and Raymond.Stories of pedestrians killed in this Latino working-class neighborhood are too common, said Rivas Cruz. In September, she attended a memorial of a 14-year-old who was killed by a reckless driver.
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