No (Free) Exit On Appian Way

Story and photo by
Kathleen Herd Masser
Mirror contributing writer
  
   In his landmark morality play No Exit, French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre depicts Hell as that place in which man lacks the power to create his future.
   Some residents see a parallel in Santa Monica. Take the case of Appian Way.
   A once-bustling but now seldom-traveled street that runs parallel to and west of Ocean Avenue, Appian Way was a thoroughfare for drivers traveling south on Pacific Coast Highway, heading for Ocean Park, who chose to bypass the perpetually snarled traffic on Ocean Avenue. They would drive off PCH, onto Appian Way, continue south, under the Pier, and follow the street to Pico Boulevard, then continue south on Ocean Way to Barnard Way.
   But the southbound lane of the nothernmost block of Appian Way was closed -- on a supposedly temporary basis -- in 1999, to accommodate construction of the City’s new water treatment plant near the Pier. The plant was completed last year, but the passage remains closed, dead-ending at the 1550 beach parking lot immediately north of the Pier. Instead of a shortcut, drivers find a warning sign – “No Free Exit.” [See Editorial, page 6.]
   For at least one Ocean Park resident, “the closure is a real pain.” The man, who asked that his name not be used, lives near the beach, south of Pico, and works in Malibu. “On weekends, it takes me twice as long to drive that quarter-mile than it did before. Why should those people [who live along Appian Way] get special treatment? I’d love it if the City shut down our street to through traffic. During the summer, we can barely get out of our driveway because of all the cars.”
   Sartre’s play takes place in Hell’s drawing room, where there is no executioner because each character tortures the other two. While the Appian Way debate is blessedly bereft of torture, there are divergent points of view.
   Ellen Brennan lives in the shadow of the Pier and recalls that, before the closure, “Street traffic was just horrendous.”
   “During the closure,” she continues, “we discovered it cut down on crime dramatically. It was decided to leave it closed.”
   But who decided? According to Brennan, “the decision was made by the Santa Monica Police Department and the City’s traffic control people.”
   Lt. Frank Fabrega, spokesman for the SMPD, denies that his department was involved.
   Planning Commissioner Julie Dad understands Brennan’s position, but has several concerns: “If the closure was done as a temporary measure, why hasn’t it reopened? And if the street was closed in a deal between residents and City staff, why was there no public process? Also, the continuing closure precludes the free flow of traffic through the area for the convenience of a few.”
   Dad has twice brought the issue to the attention of the Planning Commission, but no action was taken.
   Dad’s criticism, says Brennan, “puts this neighborhood at risk and really makes me very, very angry.” She feels that the only “convenience” at issue is that of a few grumbling residents who are annoyed at having to go a block or two out of their way.
   The road, she notes, is still accessible via cross streets that run between Appian Way and Ocean Avenue. Only the northern entrance is closed.
   Lucy Dyke, the City’s transportation planning manager, explains that the permanent closure was made “to rationalize traffic circulation,” but adds that she can’t say what the impact has been on Ocean Avenue. “I’m not aware of any good information on traffic patterns in that area before the closure was implemented. It would be hard to determine what impact it had. There have been lots of changes in the last four years.”
   Dyke is unsure who made the decision, but defends the action, saying, “We usually do a lot of public process about neighborhood traffic. But the Municipal Code allows us to close a street if it is hazardous, dangerous or has a high volume of traffic. In this case, we reviewed the situation with the police department, open space management and transportation management.”
   Dyke cited two speeific sctions from Chapter 3.12 TRAFFIC REGULATIONS in the Muncipal Code.
   Section 3.12.450 Authority of Parking and Traffic Engineer.
   The Parking and Traffic Engineer is authorized to determine those streets or alleys on which traffic is hazardous or dangerous, or by reason of the volume of traffic in such streets or alleys, the public safety or convenience, in his estimation, would best be served by allowing traffic on such streets or alleys to proceed in one direction only. (Prior code § 3344; amended by Ord. No. 616CCS, adopted 7/9/63)
   Section 3.12.460 To be posted.
   When the Parking and Traffic Engineer has determined that a street or alley is hazardous or dangerous, or by reason of the volume of traffic on such streets or alleys, the public convenience would best be served by allowing traffic to proceed in one direction only on such street or alley, he is authorized and empowered to place and maintain an appropriate sign at or near the entrance of and along such streets or alleys as he may designate, and thereafter, no person shall drive a vehicle on such streets or alleys in violation of such posted one-way sign. (Prior code § 3345; amended by Ord. No. 616CCS, adopted 7/9/63)
   The decrease in traffic is indisputable, but police department statistics contradict residents’ claims that crime has gone down since Appian Way closed. According to Fabrega, there were 35 Part 1 crimes between January and September 1998 and 41 during the same period this year. (The department tracks only major, or Part 1, crimes, which include homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, auto theft and arson. The area measured extends from the pier to the southern border of Santa Monica, and from Main Street to the water’s edge. Statistics specific to Appian Way are not available.)
   More than one unsuspecting driver has been trapped in the “no free exit” zone. The warning is disingenuously posted beyond the point of no return. By the time the sign is visible, it’s too late to change course. And once they are there, drivers are expected to pay the $5-$7 parking fee, whether they want to park or not.
   Dyke admits this is a problem, but says the City is not allowed to install signs on PCH.
   Dad disapproves of the way the closure was handled. “I don’t think the intent of the [Municipal] Code is for it to be applied arbitrarily. Just because the City says traffic needs to be ‘rationalized’ shouldn’t mean there is no public hearing. In this city, we do things in public. When we don’t, it becomes highly suspect.”
   Taking a cue from No Exit’s curtain line (“Well, well, let’s get on with it”), Mayor Pro Tempore Kevin McKeown says, “I’m struggling with the significance of this. A temporary redirection of traffic proved advantageous, so after the construction was over it was retained. There was informal discussion at the time, and I seem to remember the neighborhood was all for this. The change seems to work.”