It’s Elementary: Don’t Park Your Car in the Red Zone

Dear Street Smart:

Several parents received parking tickets the other day for parking in front of E.P. Foster School in Ventura while waiting to pick up their children from kindergarten.

Although the curb is painted red in front of the school, many of us parents park there for a few minutes on weekdays so our children do not have to walk up to Ventura Avenue to find us. Simply put, there is nowhere else to park.

The Ventura police officer who cited the parents seemed to be racing along Pleasant Place, writing as many tickets as he could in the short time that the parents were parked there waiting for their children.

The school principal even complained to the Police Department that the ticketing was unnecessary.

Doesn’t the Ventura Police Department train its officers to use good judgment in situations where public safety is involved? You certainly don’t want 5-year-old kids walking on Ventura Avenue.

Kerry Wolny

Ventura

Dear Reader:

The simple fact is that parking enforcement officers are paid to write tickets. They have little sympathy for rogue parkers, even if they are picking up their children from school.

“A red curb is a red curb,” said one officer, who did not want her name published. “It means no stopping for any reason. Regardless of where a red curb is, you can’t park there.”

Police officials dutifully back up those who make decisions on the street. “It’s always up to the officer to make the call about whether to issue a citation,” Sgt. Ted Prell said.

Bottom line? Find a new place to park before picking up your child.

Dear Street Smart:

I was recently cited for speeding in Simi Valley on Walnut Street between Tapo Street and Tapo Canyon Road.

I was correctly informed by the officer that my speed was 40 mph based on his use of radar. But since the 25 mph speed limit was not posted, I assumed that my speed was reasonable.

I contested the citation and was found guilty based on the judge’s interpretation of the vehicle code. The ruling stated that the speed limit for Walnut Street in this area is based on the speed limit of the residential streets that intersect Walnut Street.

The judge also said that speed limit signs, while not required, would improve the public’s perception of the actual speed limit for this street.

While attending traffic school, I was told by the instructor that the circumstances of my case should have been reversed, and that the street should have required an engineering and traffic study to establish the most appropriate speed limit. The instructor said that because no houses face Walnut Street in this segment, the speed limit should be 55 mph.

Now I am really confused. Can you help resolve this issue before my next citation?

Hilda Flodman

Camarillo

Dear Reader:

Simi Valley Police Lt. Jon Ainsworth said that technically you were not breaking the law by going 40 mph because there aren’t enough homes fronting Walnut Avenue to qualify it as a residential area and limit speeds to 25 mph.

The speed limit is technically 55 mph, he said. But public works crews are now doing the studies required to legally lower the speed limit.

“Those streets that don’t have enough houses facing them, technically are not residential streets,” Ainsworth said. “Even though they’re in a residential area, most people assume that the speed limit is 25 and drive very responsibly.”

Even though you were legally in the right, once a citation is issued, it is up to a judge to dispense justice, Ainsworth said.

Dear Street Smart:

Ever since we moved to this neighborhood, I have noticed the near-constant problem of people running the stop signs at the intersection of Ocean Avenue and Howard Street in Ventura.

On several occasions I have nearly been hit when traffic coming the other way does not stop.

I would not be so concerned, except that this intersection is less than 100 yards from an elementary school. I fear action will come only after someone’s kid has been hit.

Is there anything the Ventura Police Department can do, short of camping at that sign and issuing tickets? How about simply stationing someone there with a camera for a few days and issue tickets that way?

William P. McGowan

Ventura

Dear Reader:

While the prospect of filming violators and sending them a ticket through the mail has caught on with other departments, Ventura police officials have no plans to employ that crime-fighting tactic.

So, short of staking out the intersection, there is little that police officials can do, Ventura Police Sgt. Larry White said.

Budget cuts in recent years have eliminated all but two of the Ventura Police Department’s traffic officers. White said, “We lost almost all of our traffic division.”

White said he would alert his officers to the potential threat to schoolchildren, and have them patrol the neighborhood when they have the time.