Latino Pedestrian Safety

James Rojas

February 27, 2006

Tragedy has struck the Eastside Community as a 3-year-old boy lays dead and his grandmother is in critical condition from a truck accident on Whittier and Lorena. This is nothing new for this community where pedestrian accidents are very common. A few years ago, a mother and her two young children were killed by a car as they crossed the street on Lorena.  A day later in El Sereno, a young boy was killed when he was struck twice by two hit-and-run drivers. 

Latinos account for 29% of the state’s population, yet we account for 46% of all pedestrian related accidents, according to the state's

Department of Health Services.

Pedestrian safety is a critical issue in Latino neighborhoods since

our streets experience more activity than our suburbanite

counterparts.  In our neighborhoods, the streets serve as plazas by

creating a real sense of community, and by bringing people together. 

This is evidenced by the higher number of people conversing over

fences, children playing on sidewalks and front yards, and teenagers

congregating on the sidewalk and street vendors selling food and

sundries from door to door.

In many Latino communities, walking is the preferred form of

transportation.  The numerous small neighborhood mom and pop shops

that line Cesar Chavez or Whittier Blvd indicate that most customers

walk to these stores, and will walk even if transportation is

available because of the social aspects and function of the street. 

Transit usage is high among Latinos; in fact Latinos represent the 

highest ridership on MTA buses and rail! 

The streets and sidewalk infrastructure of LA are designed for

cars.  Latinos "throw a wrench" in the design and planning of the

city by walking, using public transit, and using streets and

sidewalks for purposes other than exiting and entering one's

automobile.

The City's transportation agencies focus on improving automobile

mobility be reducing traffic congestion and increasing automobile

speeds.  This is done at the expense of pedestrians’ safety.  Hardest

hit by these congestion relief mitigations are Latinos.  Many of

Los Angeles' Latino residents live in older, inexpensive

multi/family housing on wide, busy streets with high traffic volumes.

This situation is exacerbated by the fact that these areas generally

have fewer parks and playgrounds accessible for children to play.   

A study cited that  Los Angeles County, has the highest pedestrian

deaths in California.  In Southern California alone there was more

than 1,100 child pedestrian related accidents and deaths in 1996.

African/American and Latino children were disproportionately

represented in this death count.

As Latinos, we need to come together and develop solutions for

pedestrian safety.  The government answer for these types of problems is

increased enforcement.  This is only a temporary fix and is not a

long term solution. 

Our streets can be improved by changing the mindset and pattern for

urban design, by designing with the pedestrian and pedestrian safety

as the most basic element.  Street infrastructure design and policy

would emphasize reducing cars speeds, narrowing streets, reducing

traffic through residential areas and other traffic calming

techniques. Pedestrian safety infrastructure can be used as a hook to

bring in much needed investment to Latino neighborhoods. 

As the Latino population in the city grows and the number of cars

increases we will only see more pedestrian related accidents in our

communities if we do not act. The tragedy of automobile related

deaths will continue to decimate the young. 

The demographics of Los Angeles are rapidly changing and it is time

for us and government agencies and transportation authorities to

incorporate the walking needs of the growing Latino communities

everywhere as a priority in urban design and pedestrian safety. 

Doing so will lead to more equitable transportation policies for all

residents, especially pedestrians.