Questions have been answered about the contentious Slow Streets Program on Diamond Street in Pacific Beach, most importantly that plans are to make the non-motorized vehicle initiative there permanent.
“The Slow Streets Program is moving forward, this is something that’s going to be around for a while,” Kohta Zaiser, the mayor’s deputy director of community engagement, told Pacific Beach Town Council in February. “This was a pilot program for shared space, the first of its kind in the City. Long term we’re looking to install advisory bike lanes with parking on either side of the street next to a bike lane, and next to those a narrow lane of traffic in the middle.”
Added Zaiser, “Instead of A-frame signs that you see now at the end of every block, we may be installing diverters, which are bollards (short vertical posts), more of a permanent structure that will go in the middle of the street and essentially take the role that A-frames play today. It is something that is a natural reducer of speed that cars will have to go around to get access to the street. This is something that will allow safer use of the road for all ages and all vehicle users.”
The Slow Streets Program closing off Diamond Street to motorized travel from Mission Boulevard to Haines Street in PB was introduced by former Mayor Kevin Faulconer in April 2020. It was billed as a temporary measure following the closure of the PB boardwalk during the pandemic. The objective was to create safe shared spaces allowing residents to get around for essential travel while maintaining physical distancing.
Residents spoke out before PBTC for and against extending the slow streets program.
Chris Olson, a longtime PB planner also active in nonprofit beautifulPB, said the origin of slow streets goes back several years.
“The concept, which is for all mobility users to have safe neighborhood routes incorporating people walking, biking, scootering, and skating, dates back to 2013-14,” Olson said. “It was approved by PB Planning Group in 2014 designating a grid of streets to be named part of the Pathways program. And one of those streets was Diamond.”
PB Pathways is a network of safe neighborhood routes encouraging non-motorized transportation with traffic-calming measures and other features to improve safety.
“Slow streets were intended to create shared spaces allowing residents to get around their neighborhoods for essential travel during COVID,” said opponent Jessica Moore who lives on Missouri Street. “Since then we’ve had dogs run over on my street, people have had car accidents. It literally has stopped safety on our street.”
“Slow streets really did not go through us,” said Karl Rand, chair of PB Planning Group. “This is something of extreme interest to the community-at-large. I thank you for addressing this in a public forum.”
“I hear both sides, the advantages, and the disadvantages,” said Brian Curry, past PB Planning Group chair. “I know people are very upset because traffic (on Diamond) does divert to their street. It has to go somewhere. This should be a planning group issue. This is about land use. If you’re going to close a street in the community – it really needs to be carried out with community input.”
“No one on our street was given any notice about slow streets,” argued Dick Sampson who lives on Diamond. “I think the City should at least poll the individuals who are going to be influenced by this. But we’re not getting any of that. Most of the people don’t know about these public meetings.”
“No one asked anyone on Diamond, no one coordinated with us, no one did anything, it (slow streets) just appeared,” said Elizabeth Gray, whose family has lived on Diamond Street since the 1950s.
“As president of beautifulPB, we really do support sustainable, active transportation and we’ve been having this conversation with the community for 20 years,” said Katie Matchett. “People want to be able to walk and bike safely in our community. One reason PB was chosen for slow streets is that it is one of the most dangerous streets for people to walk and bike. We need to create safer spaces for people, and this is a great way to do it.”
Zaiser said the timing on when Diamond will be converted to advisory bike lanes will be contingent on a slurry seal project planned further down on Diamond unrelated to slow streets. “We want to coordinate the work that the City crews will be doing on Diamond with that project,” Zaiser said adding the City is creating small teams to “build quick-mobility, smaller infrastructure projects like slow streets. Those crews will be doing the re-striping and installation of the slow streets. By July, we’ll probably have those teams fully staffed and tasked with doing the re-striping and the bollard-like structures from Mission Boulevard to Haines Street.”
