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Encinitas residents press council to declare local roadway emergency after series of pedestrian deaths
Summary
Families and safety advocates urged the Encinitas City Council to adopt a local roadway state of emergency and step up speed enforcement after multiple pedestrian and cyclist fatalities this year, including 12‑year‑old Emery Chalikian. Speakers proposed cameras, movable electronic signs and permanent speed‑feedback devices.
Dozens of residents told the Encinitas City Council on Aug. 13 that the city must act quickly to slow traffic and protect pedestrians after a string of recent fatal crashes. Speakers — including the family of 12‑year‑old Emery Chalikian, who was killed when a driver ran a red light — asked the council to put a local roadway "state of emergency" on a near‑term agenda and to install speed cameras, movable electronic signs and more permanent speed‑feedback displays.
"Why don't you prioritize the safety of our residents?" one speaker asked the council, saying the city cannot accept more child and pedestrian deaths. Emery's parents asked the council to rename Village Square Drive to "Emery's Crossing" as a memorial and as a signal of the city’s commitment to safer crossings.
Council members heard a string of personal accounts. A former teacher who said she had been Emery's fourth‑grade teacher criticized council comments that appeared to minimize the city’s ability to change driver behavior and called for stronger infrastructure changes. Another speaker brought video evidence of vehicles exceeding 45 mph in front of a local school and asked that sheriff deputies have access to camera feeds and authority to issue citations.
Council members and staff did not adopt an emergency declaration that night. Several council members said they were sympathetic and signaled interest in pursuing a mix of enforcement, engineering and education. They advised that some short‑term enforcement options are available now and that infrastructure changes will require staff time, funding and, in some cases, state review or procurement.
City staff and members of the public repeatedly framed the problem as requiring a three‑legged approach: law enforcement to enforce speed limits, community engagement and education, and targeted infrastructure changes. Speakers urged faster action on speed‑feedback signs, red‑light and speed cameras, and near‑term safety improvements at intersections with known crash histories. The council directed staff to consider next steps and to return with options, timelines and potential funding sources at a subsequent meeting.
