RIP Mr. Schwehr.

Does anyone have statistics on car-vs-pedestrian fatalities in this city? Seems to me that car-vs-pedestrian fatalities are far more common than car-vs-car fatalities. Is the city putting enough effort into pedestrian safety?

People at that intersection going from BB/REI, turning left towards 101 don't take the time to look for pedestrians.

Same goes for the people turning right at the opposite direction, which is actually kind of a blind spot because the cross walk is somewhat hidden to the right.

Drivers are too impatient and tend to blast through the light. That goes for pretty much anywhere in the bay area, but I've seen some near misses at that intersection.

May the pedestrian, Mr. Schwehr, RIP.

Driver behaviors are completely out of whack on the roads. It's all about getting in front of someone else to be first in line for the next red light.
Don't use your turn signal because someone will see it and cut you off.

Driver's behaviors are causing the vast majority of road deaths. No other group even begins to come close; not in any way whatsoever. It'll continue until vigorous traffic enforcement is done. I welcome all efforts by the MVPD to make MV a town of zero tolerance when it comes to unsafe driving.

Very sorry to hear of Mr. Schwehr's death, resulting from this accident. You can find MVPD's annual reports with traffic related stats here:

Web Link

The 2013 report shows that MV averages 2 fatal traffic collisions a year, based on the past 5 years, although the data is not specific about pedestrian fatalities.

Does "2 fatal traffic collisions a year" include pedestrians? This chart says there were 6 car-vs-pedestrian fatalities between 2011-2013 (4 at intersections and 2 on the sidewalks): Web Link

There has been an alarming and dangerous increase in both pedestrians and bicyclists in the past several years, particularly at high traffic intersections during rush hours. Both are vulnerable to automobiles, particularly bicycles. One can expect a concomitant increase in casualties because they are so difficult to protect from automobiles without measures that unacceptably disrupt automobile traffic.

I have emailed MV City transportation saying that the crosswalks along Castro Street are not safe. Transportation Dept told me they would put it in the list of things to look into, but that was a couple of years ago!

I worry that the crosswalks that are in the middle of the block are extremely difficult to see - especially at night time. Can't we put those flashing lights along the crosswalk so drivers know to look?? Is Castro waiting for an accident before something gets fixed?

II know to look carefully because I live in MV, but what about all those coming downtown to dine? I see an accident waiting to happen and I'd be horrified to think there were things that could have prevented another death.

My deepest sympathies to the families of those pedestrians killed.

Once the offending drivers licenses are remove, or they are sued into the stone age, the roads will be safer for us all. Until then, I'm with the heavy ticketing campaign. Why not, everyone I speak to would LOVE to see cops ticketing the aggressives on the road. Do it, and keep doing it until the "manic/panic" pace that some of these people drive ends.

You would be AMAZED at how much more you can see, like bikes and pedestrians, if you're not focused on tailgating the guy in front of you, darting into/out of lanes, and driving the posted speed limit. Its remarkably safe if you do that. Really, I live it.

Very sorry to hear Mr Schwehr has passed on due to total negligence by the driver. My condolences to the family. Terrible news and the driver should be held accountable for his death.

This town is getting too many crazy speeders. MV should put much more effort into traffic enforcement like other town.

@RIP The link provided by NW Resident reports an average of 2 fatal traffic accidents per year from 2008-2013. But if you follow the link and look at the year-by-year breakdown (see p. 29), you'll see that there were 4 fatal accidents in 2011 and 3 in 2013. For some reason 2012 doesn't appear in the table.

The comment about not being able to protect pedestrians and cyclists from cars without "unacceptably" disrupting automobile traffic is interesting. So...flowing traffic is more important than saving lives? Things that slow down cars and force drivers to pay more attention don't just benefit me when I'm walking and cycling, they also benefit me when I'm driving--I've been rear-ended TWICE in this last year by inattentive drivers.

Personally, I would like to see Mountain View commit to Vision Zero, like San Francisco and so many other cities have. I would agree that the mid-block crosswalks on Castro street do not feel safe--too many drivers actually speed up as they approach the crosswalk, trying to beat pedestrians to it. Even some of the crosswalks at intersections don't feel safe, like the one at California which has the island in the middle. I have seen so many left-turning drivers nearly hit pedestrians and cyclists who have the right-of-way because the drivers were so busy trying to get through the gap in traffic.

While there is no accounting for inattentive driving, there are structural fixes that would make that intersection safer. Without going into detail that intersection is a mess with the green lights on Independence and from the shopping center allowing all traffic to proceed. How about turn arrow signals and cross walks and signals synced with the turn and thru traffic.

My condolences to the family.

How about doing something structurally to fix this intersection.

I'm truly sorry to hear of the loss of Robert Schwehr. My deepest sympathy to his family.

My condolences. In addition to careless car drivers, bicyclists are also a menace. I often see them riding without stopping at stop signs, getting on the sidewalk or intersections or crosswalks. This becomes a particular problem when I have my toddler or a stroller with me. It seems Mountain View bicyclists are unaware that they are required to follow the California Vehicle Code just like other vehicles. It would be great to put up signs that remind bicyclists to follow the law.

The true fact is that this city is getting to over crowded. A few weeks ago my daughter and I were downtown and we saw a young man on a bike get hit. Because someone could not wait and was in a rush. I'm scared to go on the cross walks on Castro either people are speeding to make the light or they stop on the cross walk so you need to walk out on the road...

With the soft penalty handed out after the California Ave accident, no wonder safety isn't on driver's minds.

@OldMV You're dead wrong. An increase in the number of people walking and bicycling is not "alarming and dangerous" it actually makes it safer for people walking and biking. Why? Because drivers learn to look for people on the street, not just other cars.

As for "unacceptably disrupting automobile traffic," what disrupts car traffic the most are having too many people hopping in cars, not too many people walking or biking.

The answer is for people to slow down when they drive so they can look carefully for people in crosswalks and on the edges of the roadway, not to encourage people to drive everywhere.

I suspect "OldMV" was being ironic. (Might just as well have been, even if not.)

I agree regarding the unsafe crosswalks on many MV streets. I see children trying to cross Middlefield at the crosswalk to get to school, and no one stopping. (If memory serves me, it is between Shoreline and Rengstorff) Of course, stopping for pedestrians at one of these intersections is risky for a driver, as other cars may rear end you, or drivers in the next lane may not realize why you are stopping, and hit a child.
Putting in the flashing lights, either in the road deck, or a hanging flashing light would alert all drivers approaching the crosswalks, and would make stopping safer for the driver and the children. It seems like an easy fix. Parents, can we start with the one on Middlefield Road?

Here's an unsubstantiated, but likely fact that is key to solving these things:

As of this writing, 19 people have "liked" the comments of "Tragedy, and for what?". But of those 19, how many themselves speed, or sometimes drive while distracted? (I'm not above counting myself amongst the guilty...though never with a phone). The same applies for people who get steamed when people speed through THEIR neighborhoods, but then speed themselves through someone else's neighborhood (or even their own...a few blocks away from home).

A big step in solving these safety issues (as well as other societal problems) is for people, especially those who claim to be well-intentioned, to take a moment to be self-reflective, admit that they may be part of the problem, and commit to leading change through their own daily actions (especially at times when they know nobody's watching them).

@OldMV was either trying to be ironic or just trolling. Really hard to tell on the internet. Very doubtful that anyone could actually believe that drivel.

One has to suspect that the driver turning left was distracted by something he was doing instead of paying attention to where he was going. He could easily have been on his cell phone. If not, he surely was fiddling with something inside the car and not looking at the oncoming pedestrian.

It's pretty clear this intersection needs to have a cycle which allows pedestrians to walk and NO CARS to move at all.

I'm really glad that I offended some "idealistic" (to be kind) people at this site. People who don't understand that greatly increased numbers of pedestrians and especially bicyclists are a major traffic problem because they are highly vulnerable are idealistic fools. Our streets weren't designed for high pedestrian or bicycle traffic, and we can not afford to "upgrade" them without creating unacceptably increased vehicular traffic congestion (sometimes called "traffic jams" by politically-incorrect people like me) on already our overly-congested streets. Unlimited housing growth is the basic problem, and MV must address this fundamental problem if it is to address needless traffic deaths.

@more serioulsy -- After reading what OldMV just posted here, I think you may be on to something.

WHOA! OldMV...nice jump to irrationality. Well done sir!

OldMV is probably a hit and runner. Drinks too much, drives and is angry at the pedestrians in the crosshairs...um...I mean crosswalks.

With more and more cameras capturing the action, OldMV will get their just dessert!

Was it one of those newfangled self driving Google cars??? It wasn't. Can't blame Google for this one. Nasty intersection with a lot of fast moving traffic.

Putting aside the ridiculous trolling by OldMV, the comments on this thread have been pretty insightful. The comment Dave Williams makes above, about structural fixes, is spot on. I've often heard the phrase "engineering, enforcement, and education" used when it comes to improving roadway safety. In addition to the enforcement and education efforts people have suggested, I'd like to see the City put more effort into improving the engineering/design of our roadways for safety. It's a proven fact that driver behavior is influenced by the design of roadways... If you design a road like a drag strip, with really wide lanes, long straightaways and nothing to give drivers a reason to slow down, they will speed and endanger pedestrians and bicyclists, along with themselves and other drivers. But there are a host of things that can be done to calm traffic and improve safety, such as narrowing lanes, making tighter turns (rather than fast, sweeping turns) at intersections, adding medians, etc. Let's push the City to implement engineering improvements at this location, and many other dangerous ones around Mountain View.

Good ideas, I'm not knocking them: what about driving the speed limit, respecting everyone and everything on the road, stop riding on bumpers, by passing me because I'm driving the speed limit and honking at me because I'm waiting for a pedestrian to cross the street. Basically aggressive drivers have no business bullying those which want to follow the rules.

Everyday I tell me girls don't trust any car because they are not going to consider you as a pedestrian, it's a fact. My girls know first hand drivers are not considerate.

They know the hot spots, they have even pro-filed certain drivers who tend to drive more aggressive-all this from 2 teens. I just hope some of the aggressive drivers are reading this and hopefully change.

There is a crosswalk with no lights on Miramonte between Barbara and Marilyn and although It's closer to cross that walkway, I never do because I just don't trust that crossing with a wide Miramonte Street ie two lanes each way. Some kids do cross that from two schools nearby. I like to see Miramonte with only one lane each way like they did with Cuesta between Miramonte and Springer.

That said, although it's only one lane each way on Cuesta between Miramonte and Springer, I make sure cars stop before crossing there too. I don't step out at all until they do.

As good citizens we should ALL be trying to control speeders with our own vehicles. As a driver, there are ways of slowing the pace on the roads to get them back into legal limits.
That's what we do in our neighborhood. A lot of people try and use neighborhood streets to blast through as a short cut. You can REALLY watch them stream in your rear view mirror as you refuse to help them break the law by driving just under the speed limit and completing long thorough stops at all stop signs.

you are talking about insighting rage in other drivers, is that really what you want? If you have a problem with someone else driving I suggest you pull over rather than take the law into your own hands.

@Speed Bumb -- You can always tell which drivers out there are trouble. Like our subject from Monta Loma, for instance -- the character definitely sounds like a road rager, eh?

No way! I agree with speedbump, and we've been doing it for years around our home, though the intent is safety, not to enrage. Why should we facilitate lawbreakers, esp on our own home streets? Also, rage is a strong word. From the 6 years we have been doing this I've never seen "rage". I would say pouty and miffed is more the standard order. And to that I say, aww, poor baybeeee can't speed. LOL.