NORTHRIDGE - Already stuck with the reputation for being one of the Valley's most dangerous crossing zones for foot traffic, the area around CSUN's sprawling campus added one more fatality Monday to a growing list of pedestrian casualties.
The death of a 60-year-old woman, who was struck just moments after stepping into a crosswalk at Zelzah Avenue and Lassen Street at dawn Monday, renewed concerns among residents who are working to make the area safer.
"It may have happened in years past, but this time around it certainly seems more concentrated around CSUN," said Steve Patel, president of the Northridge East Neighborhood Council.
"I don't know if more people are walking now or riding their bikes. These accidents are disturbing and alarming."
In the last six months, cars have struck seven pedestrians on streets near the 356-acre campus - killing two, leaving another two with life-threatening injuries and injuring three others.
The latest victim was Victoria Santos of Panorama City, who died at 6:40 a.m. while trying to cross Zelzah Avenue.
A pickup truck driver traveling east on Lassen Street had turned right onto Zelzah as the light turned green when he hit Santos, said LAPD Officer Ana Aguirre.
The man pulled over and called 911. He told officers that he didn't see the woman in the crosswalk, Aguirre said.
The high frequency of crashes between cars and pedestrians is characteristic of the dense,
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54-square-mile area of the San Fernando Valley known by the LAPD as the Devonshire area. In 2007, the area had 88 such accidents, a 21 percent jump from 2005. The West Valley area also had a 21 percent increase in the period, but the next-highest area was North Hollywood, with just an 8 percent increase. The Mission and Foothill areas saw a decline.
Home to wide boulevards, fast-food outlets and tens of thousands of students and residents, the area around California State University, Northridge is ripe for pedestrian versus auto collisions. Add cell phones to the mix, and you have extremely dangerous conditions, said Anne Glavin, chief of CSUN's public safety office.
"We see it all the time - pedestrians on cell phones walk off the curb without looking and into the street with oncoming traffic," Glavin said. "Then you also see drivers on cell phones."
The Northridge East Neighborhood Council wants to do more than educate residents about the high number of pedestrian-related accidents around the campus, Patel said. The group is looking into the costs to install crosswalks with flashing lights, which the city of Glendale has adopted in several areas.
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation is also getting involved. To alert motorists to their speeds near CSUN, the department is installing two digital feedback signs that flash drivers their speeds. The signs, paid for by federal grant money, will go up on Devonshire near Zelzah Avenue and Balboa Boulevard, said department spokesman Bruce Gillman.
In addition to Santos, the following people were struck by cars near CSUN over the past several months:
Olivia Almalel, 33, suffered several spinal injuries after being intentionally plowed down on Dec. 25 by a car that struck her from behind and threw her 35 feet as she crossed Reseda Boulevard near Devonshire Street.
Three men in their 20s were seriously injured Dec. 12 when a car hit them during rush hour at Louise Avenue and Roscoe Boulevard.
Yao Lu, a 22-year-old exchange CSUN student from China, was in a coma for eight days and suffered internal bleeding after being mowed down by a hit-and-run driver Nov. 3 at Reseda Boulevard and Superior Street.
Another hit-and-run driver killed Johoney Lobos, a 19-year-old CSUN student, on Sept. 23 as she crossed the 10300 block of Lindley Avenue near Devonshire Street. Police caught the 42-year-old driver and charged her with gross vehicle manslaughter while intoxicated and fleeing the scene.
After 74 traffic accidents were reported in and around the campus perimeter in 2006, community outcry forced the school to launch an educational and enforcement campaign targeting motorists and creating safety hazards for pedestrians.
The school's specialized safety program is launched several times a year, with signs flanking the campus alerting motorists to focus on the roads and for pedestrians to use crosswalks.
"This is not a new phenomenon," said Glavin. "I've been at CSUN for seven years, and there have always been these kind of issues in this area."
Article written by Sue Doyle
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