Road Closure

That Car Ban In Griffith Park Is Now Permanent — And More Road Changes Are On The Way

From LAist.com

By Ryan Fonseca

The car ban on a short stretch of road in Griffith Park that started out as temporary is now here to stay. The city of L.A.’s Board of Recreation and Parks Commissioners voted unanimously on Thursday to make the ban permanent.

Back in late June, a ⅔ mile section of Griffith Park Drive was closed to car traffic from the Travel Town Museum to Mt. Hollywood Drive. The road had become a popular route for speeding drivers looking to avoid slowdowns on the nearby 134 and 5 freeways. That made the park a dangerous place for the people walking, biking, riding horses or otherwise enjoying the public space as intended.

City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who oversees Griffith Park as part of the city’s 4th Council District, had already been exploring ways to improve traffic safety in the park. But those efforts were fast-tracked after cyclist Andrew Jelmert, 77, was killed by a driver there in April.

“I am so excited to bring the road revolution home to Council District 4,” Raman said in a news release. “Our office, in partnership with the Department of Recreation and Parks, worked with lightning speed to make this closure along Griffith Park Drive a reality, and we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support from the community.”

 

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Get ready for a road closure in Griffith Park

From TheEastsiderla.com

Los Feliz — A section of roadway through Griffith Park will be closed to cars starting next week. It’s part of a pilot program to find ways to reduce cut-through traffic and improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and wildlife in the city’s largest park.

Starting June 27, the north end of Griffith Park Drive near the 134 Freeway will be closed to personal vehicles from Travel Town to the top of the hill near the Mount Hollywood Drive turnoff, according to information posted by the Recreation and Parks Department.

“If all goes well after a few weeks, it is anticipated that we will move to a permanent closure of this stretch of road,” said a posting on a NextDoor group by the Recreation and Parks Department. City of LA vehicles will still be accessing that stretch of roadway during this time.

Department officials did not return calls and emails for information about the closure and timeline for other possible traffic calming plans.

Closing the road was one of the recommendations in a study to improve safety and transportation on Crystal Springs and Griffith Park drives. That study was already underway when a 77-year-old cyclist was struck and killed by a driver on Crystal Springs Drive in April.

At the May meeting of the Griffith Park Advisory Board, the transportation consultants working on the study presented an overview of the problems on the two roads, including speeding and a lack of separation between motor vehicle traffic and pedestrian and bike paths. The study described the section of the upcoming road closure as a “conflict area” involving speeding drivers, cyclists and vehicles headed to the Griffith Park Composting Facility.

Photo by Connor Jalbert on Unsplash

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