LAGUNA BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM TO: FROM: Christa Johnson, Assistant City Manager Jason C. Kravetz, Captain DATE: January 16, 2015 SUBJECT: Laguna Canyon Road Collision Analysis Within the last couple of weeks, staff commenced an evaluation of traffic collisions on Laguna Canyon Road for the period between June 1, 2007 through January 16, 2015. The area of study was the length of Laguna Canyon Road from Forest Avenue to El Toro Road. In total, staff read 800 police reports and determined that 572 accidents were within the parameters of this study. The analysis revealed some interesting statistical information about the causes of collisions at many different points along Laguna Canyon Road. With this said, the leading factor continues to be distracted or speeding motorists involved in rear-end accidents (56%). The other 34% of collisions were caused by motorists making improper left turns, illegal U-turns, failing to stay in their proper lane of travel or running red lights. The final 10% were a mix of parking accidents, unsafe starting from a stopped position or drunk drivers. It is anticipated that this material will help the task force make informed suggestions about the future design of Laguna Canyon Road. Background: State Route 133 is one of three entry/exit routes into the City of Laguna Beach which is used by thousands of residents, employees and visitors each day. It is entirely owned, maintained and controlled by the State of California through Caltrans. The road has one designated inbound and outbound traffic lane separated by a continuous leftturn lane from Canyon Acres to El Toro Road. The area of examination for this report was approximately 2.3 miles in length. Bordering the roadway are both residential and commercial buildings with approximately 76 entry/exit driveways used by residents, visitors, employees and patrons. Analysis: In order to review the causal factors of collisions by specific area, Laguna Canyon Road was broken into five (5) zones for inquiry. Each zone is discussed as follows:
Zone 1-Forest Avenue to Milligan Drive (intersection before Canyon Acres): Zone 1 accounted for 67 of the 572 collisions (12%). This portion of road is different from the others because it has two lanes of travel in each direction with a raised landscaped center divider. Zone 1 had a higher percentage of pedestrian involved collisions because of the tourist serving businesses adjacent to it. This area also had a higher percentage of accidents caused by driver s opening their doors into traffic and being struck by other motor vehicles or bicyclists. At least 20 accidents were caused by drivers rear-ending vehicles at the Pageant of the Masters traffic signal at 650 Laguna Canyon Road. The distribution of collisions was fairly equal for both directions. Most collisions near the Sawdust Festival involved drivers attempting to park, drop off or re-enter traffic when it was unsafe. There were also reports of trolleys or buses being sideswiped while picking up or unloading passengers. Zone 2- Canyon Acres to the start of Big Bend: Zone 2 was the most collision prone area of this study with 181 collisions (32%). Approximately 40 of the 181 collisions occurred near the intersection of Canyon Acres with most occurring in the northbound lanes. This intersection experienced a variety of collision causes because of the signal, the two merging lanes and the sole left turn lane in the southbound direction. Staff also noted road rage incidents were highest in this area. This was attributed to people refusing to merge or assuming that other motorists have cheated by going through the Frontage Road before re-entering Laguna Canyon Road. Another interesting note was the prevalence of northbound drivers making illegal U-turns and being struck by southbound vehicles. Frustrated drivers appear to be making the U-turns when they see traffic stopped ahead. Once they clear the raised median, they are able to make this unsafe turning movement. By this point, the lane drop for northbound traffic has ended and both lanes have merged into one. The other 141 accidents between the Act V lot and the beginning of Big Bend were a mix of rear-end and turning collisions. A vast majority of these accidents occurred in the direct vicinity of 2222 Laguna Canyon Road and were caused by: Stop and go traffic where a driver wasn t paying attention and rear-ended another car. Motorists suddenly stopping for pedestrians at LCAD and being rear-ended.
There were also several collisions in the center lane. The accidents were a mix of courtesy drivers abruptly stopping to let someone turn, and being rear-ended, or motorists illegally passing in the center lane and striking a car waiting to turn. In October 2014, Caltrans installed the HAWK pedestrian safety system in front of LCAD. The following table depicts the accident rate for this location before and after installation. Oct. 1 st Dec. 31st Number of Collisions 2007 3 2008 2 2009 5 2010 6 2011 11 2012 6 2013 6 2014 (post installation) 4 The data for the HAWK system is inconclusive at this point because such a short period of time is being measured. Zone 3- Big Bend: There were 90 collisions in Big Bend which accounted for 16% of the total. Staff noted the following: The most serious injury accidents took place in Big Bend. This area had more late evening and early morning, high speed injury accidents. It had the highest number of vehicle versus utility pole accidents. Drunk Drivers were involved in a greater number of accidents in this area. Rollover accidents were more prevalent in Big Bend. It had the lowest rate of rear-end collisions. Zone 4- Stan Oaks Drive to Annaliese School: This area had 115 of the 572 collisions (20%). Most collisions occurred in the vicinity of the Dog Park. Interestingly, there is a brief acceleration lane near the Dog Park which appears to contribute to the higher number of accidents because people are using it as an illegal passing lane. Once cars pass each other on the right, there tends to be more side-swipe, rear-end and road rage incidents. There is also a small parking area adjacent to the road which seemed to impact the accidents. These collisions typically involved someone trying to park, or exit a parking space, and making
an illegal U-turn across Laguna Canyon Road. In order to eliminate the problem, some sort of impediment could be installed in the center lane. Other notable items: There were several turning accidents resulting from people entering or exiting the Canyon Club. Many of the rear-end collisions occurred at much higher speeds because there was less stop and go traffic. Motorists were more prone to come to sudden stops which resulted in more injuries and property damage. Courtesy drivers near Annaliese School seemed to be a contributing factor to rear-end collisions. These motorists come to stops when the road is clear to let others make turns into the driveway. This interruption in traffic flow leads to rear-end collisions. Zone 5-Intersection of El Toro and Laguna Canyon Road: 111of the 572 collisions occurred within this zone and accounted for 19% of all the accidents. This percentage wasn t overly surprising given the number of vehicles which travel through this busy intersection. The intersection is unusual in the fact that there are only three intersecting points and it has two merging and three dedicated turning lanes. Most of the accidents were found to be attributed to: People running the light Failure to turn properly Sideswipe collisions from the merging lanes Observations: 1) Most drivers causing rear-end collisions in stop and go traffic readily admit to looking away, not paying attention, playing with the radio or a GPS device. Yet, it is more explainable that cell phone distractions have caused an increase in these types of accidents. One can gather this anecdotal information by watching the motorists during heavy traffic periods. Officers encounter motorists who are quick to admit to the listed distractions but will not admit to looking at their phones because it is against the law. 2) Placing a barrier in the turning lane past the Canyon Acres merge would discourage illegal U-turn or passing violations. 3) Limiting motorists exiting driveways to right turns only might improve traffic flow, but will also lead to more people using the center lane for U-turns and add to sign proliferation along the Laguna Canyon. 4) Ideally, having a paved trail off of Laguna Canyon Road would allow for bicyclists to move out of traffic and onto a designated bike path.
5) During peak commute hours the normal outbound traffic flow can sometimes be interrupted and delayed while motorists accommodate drivers departing from their homes and businesses. Channeling motorists to one main driveway would limit disruptions. 6) Placing a center lane obstruction near the Dog Park would discourage illegal U-turns. Additional Statistical Information: Accidents by Zone Number of Collisions* Zone 1 67 (12%) Zone 2 181 (32%) Zone 3 90 (16%) Zone 4 115 (20%) Zone 5 111 (19%) *8 occurred in undetermined locations Day of the Week Number of Collisions Wednesday 101 Friday 92 Saturday 89 Tuesday 81 Sunday 72 Thursday 69 Monday 68 Month Number of Collisions July 92 August 75 October 54 December 51 June 48 March 44 April 42 February 36 May 35 January 34 November 31 September 30 Year Number of Collisions 2007* 36 2008 69 2009 83 2010 77 2011 75 2012 72 2013 78 2014 79 2015** 3 *June 1 st through December 31 st **Through January 16 th Other Items Number of Collisions Occurring in N/B lanes 291 (51%) Occurring in S/B lanes 229 (40%) Vehicles hitting utility poles 36 (6%) Rear-End Collisions 318 (56%) Injury Collisions 220 (39%) Fatality Collisions 6 people (five accidents)* Drunk Drivers 46 (8%) Hit and Run 40 (7%) Pedestrians Involved 9 (2%) Bicyclists Involved 14 (2%) Motorcyclists Involved 21 (4%) More than 2 cars involved 114 (20%)
*Fatality Collisions: January 9, 2010- Intoxicated Pedestrian was crossing Laguna Canyon Road when he was struck by a southbound vehicle near the Act V lot. September 23, 2012- A vehicle pulled out of 20652 Laguna Canyon Road directly in the path of an oncoming motorcyclist. The rider passed away. April 2, 2013- A Tesla and Mercedes were racing each other northbound on Laguna Canyon Road. After passing through El Toro Road, the Tesla had a head-on collision with a Honda Accord and killed both occupants of the Honda. April 3, 2014- Pedestrian Nina Fitzpatrick was struck and killed by an 83 year old tourist from Minnesota while she was crossing Laguna Canyon Road in a marked crosswalk at 2222 LCR. May 21, 2014- A drunk driver struck a parked car while traveling southbound on Laguna Canyon Road just past Canyon Acres.