It's not uncommon to feel nervous or confused at the five-way intersection of Sunset Drive, Congress Avenue and Cedar Street in Pacific Grove. Sometimes it's not clear which driver has the right of way. Is it the folks headed east or west on Sunset? Those crossing over Congress? The lone car coming off of Cedar?
Those days may become a thing of the past, now that the troublesome intersection near Pacific Grove High School is due for a major upgrade thanks to voter-approved Measure X funding through the Transportation Agency for Monterey County.
Pacific Grove is set to receive up to $1 million of Measure X funds for the initial public outreach and environmental planning phases.
The public outreach begins 5:30, tomorrow, Nov. 9, at the Pacific Grove Community Center, and continues with a walking intersection audit from 12:30-2pm, Thursday, at the southwest corner of the intersection next to the high school track. A second evening workshop takes place later that evening, from 5:30-7:30, also at the community center.
Each event is meant to build on the others, so people are encouraged to attend as many as possible, according to a public invitation issued by Joyce Halabi, deputy director of P.G. Public Works.
"While the project is intersection-specific, it presents an opportunity to think broadly!" Halabi writes. "What are your aspirations for this corridor? What do you already love about this area that the project could enhance? How can we make this intersection and surrounding neighborhood safer and more inviting for everyone?"
The intersection is a part of the Highway 68 corridor which was studied by TAMC back in 2016. The final results of that study proposed at least two solutions. One included closing Cedar Street to create a four-way stop. Another was for the creation of a roundabout, similar to the one at Highway 68 and Highway 1.
The workshops are facilitated by Smart Growth America, a national nonprofit that helps communities create livable places through technical assistance, advocacy and thought leadership.
For more information, contact Public Works at pwdadmin@cityofpacficgrove.org, or call 648-5722.
(1) comment
I understand the frustration at this intersection but I fail to see how a roundabout would be a safe alternative for all the pedestrian traffic that occurs at the beginning and end of school days. What are the cars in the middle of the roundabout supposed to do when someone enters a crosswalk? Stop in the middle? That would defeat the essential idea of a roundabout: keeping traffic merging and moving.
And, while I really appreciate and applaud the roundabout at the intersection of Highway 1 and Highway 68 however, any comparisons with the intersection in question in this article are not realistic, given that the roundabout at the highway intersection has virtually zero pedestrian use. Completely different situations.
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