No Stop Sign for Deadly East Palo Alto Intersection
City council votes for changes at intersection, but does not vote for stop sign.
Children and adults have been struck by cars while trying to cross the intersection in East Palo Alto.
A controversial call by the East Palo Alto city council. Council members voted Tuesday night to make changes to the intersection where a young girl was killed just two months ago, but they did not go as far as residents had hoped.
The council voted to install flashing LED signs at the intersection at Bay Road and Gloria Way. The city will also add pavement markings, warning drivers to slow down. However, council members stopped short of ordering the installation of a stop sign. That decision has a lot of residents upset.
"An actual stop sign I think people actually have to stop because it's the law," said Maggie McDuffy. "Flashy light thing I think people don't realize okay slow down; proceed."
The council says this is a temporary solution and a stop sign is not completely off the table.
The change comes after a deadly accident at the intersection on Sept. 28. 6-year-old Sioreli Torres Zamora was hit and killed while crossing at the intersection. The driver of the car told police the morning sun blinded her from seeing the young girl.
A review of the intersection by a traffic engineer hired by the city found that though there was also an accident six months earlier involving a young boy, there were not enough accidents at the intersection to warrant a stop sign. State guidelines require five collisions within a 12-moth period.
