That ripped-up DIY crosswalk? West LA council member says city removed it after she asked it stay in place

When residents took it upon themselves to paint crosswalks around a popular West L.A. park, city crews — citing federal and state regulations — scrubbed them away Friday after the DIY project went viral on social media.

But in an interview with LAist, Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park, who represents the area, said crews removed the paint job even after she requested that the DIY crosswalks be left in place.

“ What is the worst that could possibly happen?” Park said in an interview with LAist. “This intersection is at least slightly more safe [with the DIY crosswalks] while we try to figure out the next steps.”

The backstory

Over two Saturdays in late May, Sawtelle resident Jonathan Hale, along with friends, neighbors and the consultation of the Crosswalk Collective, painted yellow crosswalks around Stoner Park ahead of summer camp programs.

"It's just a busy area and I didn't want to wait for somebody to get injured or killed before we did something," Hale previously told LAist.

Three days after the local newspaper reported on the community’s actions, the L.A. Department of Transportation got rid of the crosswalks.

Park, who represents areas including Sawtelle, Venice and West L.A., said that she’s made a request “ through the proper channels” to assess what speed safety treatments could be installed around Stoner Park.

“ I don't particularly want to see limited city resources being used in a war of attrition with neighbors who are just trying to make their community safe,” Park said. “I hope that we can all get to the table and work on this together.”

What city transportation officials had to say

In a statement to LAist, the Department of Transportation said it “shares the community’s goal to make neighborhood streets safer, and is assessing these locations to install crosswalks that comply with State and Federal requirements.”

Diego de la Garza, who was an associate director of transportation under former Mayor Eric Garcetti, said state law makes the city liable for dangerous conditions on its property in the public right of way.

"A homemade crosswalk is a dangerous condition because it creates the illusion of safety when there is none," de la Garza said, adding that several factors, including lighting, signals and speed limits, need to be considered.

Next steps

Park expressed solidarity with the sentiment that led residents to take matters into their own hands and also the frustration that followed when the city sent crews to remove the crosswalks soon after they were publicized.

“ They actually looked pretty good to me,” Park said of the crosswalks.

Ultimately, Park said she wished her constituents had reached out to her office before they painted the crosswalks.

“ We don't have to get into little tit-for-tats like this — that isn’t going to solve the problem,” Park said, adding that her office regularly asks the Department of Transportation to assess safety needs in the public right-of-way. “At the end of the day, we have to do it right.”

In its statement, the Department of Transportation encouraged Angelenos to request traffic safety improvement requests through MyLA311 or by contacting their City Council representative.