”
I use Wright Avenue between Hale Avenue and Monterey Road and
there are only about two lights and it’s very dark at night. There
are no crosswalks except at the church and it’s very dangerous for
students. Can you help me out with this?
”
“I use Wright Avenue between Hale Avenue and Monterey Road and there are only about two lights and it’s very dark at night. There are no crosswalks except at the church and it’s very dangerous for students. Can you help me out with this?”
Red Phone: Dear In The Dark, Red Phone contacted Scott Creer, senior civil engineer with the Morgan Hill Public Works Department, who said this section of Wright Avenue is located in one of the old parts of town where the power lines are overhead and the streets lights are mounted on the utility poles.
“As a result, new ground-mounted city standard street lights cannot be added due to conflict with the overhead power lines,” Creer said. “Also, only certain utility poles (as determined by PG&E) can have streetlights mounted to them. Therefore, there is not a lot of options for adding additional street lights to this section of roadway at the present time. However, the city will be embarking on a street light LED conversion program later this year which may enhance the lighting levels of the existing street lights on Wright Avenue.”
Regarding the lack of crosswalks on Wright Avenue, since the California Vehicle Code maintains that crosswalks exist at the intersection of any two streets it is assumed that the question is referring to the lack of marked crosswalks. It is the policy of most government agencies (including the city of Morgan Hill) to only stripe crosswalks at intersections controlled by a four-way stop or a traffic signal for pedestrian safety reasons.
Good caller, hope that answers your questions.
