By Damian Kevitt, Executive Director, Streets Are For Everyone

I have some GREAT NEWS, but first, I’m going to vent a little. IT SUCKS that it takes a tragedy to make roads safer, but it would be a worse tragedy if we didn’t make things better after one. I wish we didn’t just wait until someone or many someones die before we decide to invest in the obvious to save lives on our roads. Maybe this is just a problem in Los Angeles, but I doubt it. Time and time again, SAFE has helped transform a road or community into something better because there’s been a tragedy. We know how to do it. Griffith Park is another example, and we ARE doing it, but it sucks that someone has to die for change to happen. 

Okay, venting is done. Now for the good news! First, a recap of the tragedy, then the good news. 

On 18 April 2022 (exactly two years ago as I’m writing this), 77-year-old Andrew Jelmert was riding on Crystal Springs Drive, finishing a 67-mile training ride, when he was mowed down by a driver doing 80+ MPH through the park. Andrew died at the scene. 

At 4,310 acres, Griffith Park is one of the 11th largest city-owned parks in the US. In comparison, it is about four times bigger than Central Park in New York City and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. Griffith Park is truly a gem, a diamond in the rough, in the middle of Los Angeles. 

It’s also one of the few large urban parks that still allows cars to drive through it. Even Central Park and Golden Gate Park no longer allow cars to drive through the park. Roughly 80% of the vehicles that enter the park only use it as a cut-through to avoid the 5 Freeway, which runs right next to Griffith Park. 

After Andrew’s fatality, SAFE went into high gear to transform Griffith Park into a safe haven for cyclists, runners, equestrians, families, and kids, not a high-speed corridor for drivers to speed through. Many other groups and community members joined the outcry – Streets For All, Bike LA, Active SGV, Los Feliz Neighborhood Council, etc. Luckily, we had the support of Councilmember Nithya Raman and Asm. Laura Friedman, and within a few months, part of Griffith Park Drive was closed to all cars and turned into a bike and pedestrian path only. Then Asm. Laura Friedman got $4 million of funding approved for continued safety enhancements of Griffith Park.  

A full plan for active transportation safety improvements for pedestrians, cyclists, and equestrians was completed for the east end of Griffith Park. It includes 6 phases of upgrades to be completed as funding is obtained. 

For the last two years, the 4 million approved by the State of CA was tied up in red tape, but as of 4 April, this funding has now been released, and construction will start in the next few weeks. 

This is the most significant influx of funding for Griffith Park for road safety, general infrastructure improvements, repaving, and adding more bike lanes in decades, possibly ever. The four million will accomplish Phase 3 of the planned upgrades, focused primarily on making Crystal Springs Drive safer for those who need it most – runners, cyclists, and equestrians. 

Specific changes for Phase 3 include:

1. Implementing a road buffet on Crystal Springs Drive with one general purpose lane in each direction and wide buffered bicycle and pedestrian lanes

2. Rehabilitating the pavement from Griffith Park Drive to Fire Road

3. Installing continental crosswalks at specific locations

4. Implementing traffic calming at the Riverside entrance of Griffith Park

5. Installing Class II bike lanes to fill in a gap in the bike network along Zoo Drive.

I can’t wait to see the changes in real life. I know it’ll make a world of difference for the thousands who use this park every day for its intended purpose when Griffith Park was first created – “...a place of recreation and rest for the masses, a resort for the rank and file, for the plain people” – G.J. Griffith.