Council approves tactical crosswalk pilot at Parlier and Smyrna; $5,000 requested for accessibility ramp

City engineer Javier Andrade told the council that a tactical-urbanism committee identified the intersection of Parlier and Smyrna as a priority due to accidents there and broad public support. Staff performed a traffic study and recommended a painted crosswalk with bulb-outs to slow traffic and improve visibility as a pilot. Andrade said the pilot will be implemented as a study (no contractor hire for permanent work), the intersection will be painted and evaluated before considering permanent construction, and staff requested authorization of $5,000 to install a missing ramp on the north side to meet accessibility requirements.

Council members and the police chief expressed support for the pilot as a low-cost safety measure. After brief public outreach and no public opposition at the hearing, the council adopted the resolution to proceed with the study crosswalk (recorded as resolution 2024-11 in the staff presentation) and approved the authorization to install the ramp and paint the intersection.