Westwood Neighborhood Council votes to create new crosswalk

The Westwood Neighborhood Council unanimously voted Wednesday to ask the city to draw a crosswalk from the east side of Levering Avenue to the Chevron gas station on Le Conte Avenue.

The council passed the motion to address safety concerns some students and Westwood residents recently expressed. UCLA third-year political science student Aurelia Friedman, who serves as the council’s student director, proposed the idea.

“I live in Club California apartments, so I often go to the Le Conte and Levering avenues intersection, but I almost always see cars zipping by when I try to cross,” Friedman said.

Friedman said some students came to her with safety concerns about the intersection, so she said she thought the council should immediately address the safety conditions of the intersection.

Los Angeles Department of Transportation officials plan to address the crosswalk motion, said Bruce Gillman, department spokesperson.

Gillman recommended Westwood Neighborhood Council officials request the proposal on myladot.lacity.org. Then LADOT officials would send an engineer to the Le Conte and Levering intersection to make a traffic survey, which the office representatives would evaluate and respond to, Gillman said.

Some UCLA students and other pedestrians crossing the Levering and Le Conte intersection said they think a clearly marked crosswalk would benefit pedestrians.

“I think this idea is pretty necessary because it takes way longer for me to get across these intersections without the crosswalks since I always have to look around and be extra cautious that cars are not around,” said fourth-year political science student Mack McGonagall.

Fifth-year English student Jasmine Perez, who lives on Roebling Avenue, said she also supports the crosswalk motion. She said she is often concerned for students who try to cross the intersection while carrying heavy groceries or laundry bags.

UCLA neurology doctor Patkawat Ramart said the proposed crosswalk would be convenient for him as he walks to work.

“I have to cross this intersection to get to my work building on Westwood, which should not take much time,” Ramart said. “But since there is no clear cross walk here I have to detour around the intersection, which takes more time than I would need to take to get to my destination.”

Gillman said he thinks it is premature for the Los Angeles Department of Transportation to decide whether the crosswalk motion is necessary before making and evaluating the traffic survey.