Compromise, not petitions, is better plan

By Kathy DaSilva

In response to all of the opinions and letters regarding the San Vicente Road improvement.

It will not be four lanes. It will reduce the curves, not straighten them, and the two existing lanes will each be wider.

Those of us who live on San Vicente Road and cannot safely leave our driveways would like to see this project done. As we try to get on the road, we are met with honking horns and one finger salutes because we have no line of sight and can’t go from stopped to 60 miles per hour in less than two seconds. Some of us have been hit.

I watch the sheriffs, firefighters and ambulance crews try to help accident victims about twice a month. Traffic is speeding, and speeding past the accident while the firefighters and sheriffs yell at the traffic to “slow down.” It isn’t all casino traffic. Some are teens rushing to get home. Some are adults rushing to the grocery store or wherever.

The road needs to be straightened, not widened, simply for safety. We need to let people out of their driveways and easement roads and into traffic. We need to be proponents of reducing the worst curves and save as many oaks as possible.

Simply saying no to the project won’t save lives and isn’t a solution. We all need to slow down, too. We chose to live in the country. We drive as if we’re in the city.

The road isn’t the whole problem. I think speed contributes. If the parts of the road that are most dangerous were straightened and the speed limit were dropped and enforced at 45mph, it might work. I read that some of the protest is due to the inconvenience that will add 10 to 15 minutes to SDCE commutes during construction. Why is everyone in such a hurry? It isn’t a match with the “rural” mindset.

And yes, there are those who would ride their horses to Barnett Ranch on the pathway and some of us have worked to that end for the last year. The high school track team might enjoy training on the groomed pathway instead of running in the street.

It seems a compromise, instead of petitions against the whole project, might be a better plan.