City presents draft Comprehensive Safety Action Plan; commission recommends plan to council

City staff and consultant Farrin Piers presented a draft Comprehensive Safety Action Plan (CSAP) to the Mobility and Traffic Safety Commission, identifying priority corridors and a package of near‑term and long‑term countermeasures intended to advance the city's Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries.

Angelica Rocha of Farrin Piers summarized the data analysis and prioritization method used to identify segments of the city that concentrate severe crashes. The analysis showed that deaths and serious‑injury crashes were concentrated on about 16% of the city's roadway network over the study period. Two corridors rose to the top for initial conceptual work: a long east‑west corridor described in the presentation (flagged in materials as Encinitas Boulevard and West B Street) and a stretch of El Camino Real.

Rocha said the CSAP pairs corridor analyses with near‑term “quick‑build” improvements (striping, temporary materials, signal retiming and signal hardware changes, temporary pedestrian refuges) and longer‑term capital projects that will require grant funding or capital allocations. She highlighted implementation strategies across five Safe Systems categories: safe road users, safe vehicles, safe speeds, safe roads, and post‑crash care, and explained that having an adopted CSAP would make the city eligible for certain federal grants, notably the U.S. DOT Safe Streets and Roads for All program, and for a Vision Zero city designation.

Commissioners asked for additional evaluation metrics and follow‑up reporting. Several commissioners raised questions about the evidence for particular treatments and about how to measure benefits after implementation; Commissioner Glenn Johnson urged that new measures include a feedback loop so the city can evaluate effectiveness. Public commenters expressed mixed opinions: some residents near a selected intersection (La Mesa and El Portal) urged minimal change or no change to preserve parking and neighborhood access, while others proposed removing pavement in triangular gore areas to reduce maintenance costs.

After discussion, Commissioner Glenn Johnson moved that the commission recommend the draft CSAP for adoption by City Council. The motion passed on a verbal roll call vote: Medock — yes; Johnson — yes; Trauth — yes; Thiele — yes; Templin — no. Staff will forward the draft CSAP and the commission recommendation to City Council for consideration.

Ending

Staff noted the next steps include integrating near‑term strategies into the city's work plan, pursuing grant funding for longer‑term projects, and embedding safety considerations across city departments; the commission's recommendation will be transmitted to council.