Item 19 - City Council Work Study Session Regarding the First Street Multimodal Boulevard Study

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City of Santa Ana | First Street Multimodal Corridor Technical Memorandum 19 Safety Assessment The posted speed limit along First Street is 40 miles per hour, but field observations and crash data indicate that speeding is a persistent issue throughout the corridor. This behavior significantly contributes to safety concerns, particularly for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and bicyclists. Over the past eight years, approximately 25% of all reported collisions were attributed to unsafe speed as a primary contributing factor. These speed-related crashes tend to be more severe, often resulting in serious injuries or fatalities. The combination of high travel speeds with limited physical separation between vehicles and pedestrians, and long crossing distances at intersections, creates a hazardous environment that demands targeted traffic calming and safety interventions. Existing available crash data was used to identify potential safety concerns or historic trends. Crash data for the most recent 8-year period (2017-2024) was obtained from the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) crash database then ‘scrubbed’ to address inconsistencies in how the data was logged. Table 7 summarizes the results of the crash analysis including the severity, crash type and crash factor. Of the 479 crashes reported over the eight-year period, 28 resulted in a fatality or severe injury. The majority of the crashes report were either broadside or rear end. Common causes of broadside crashes include: • Running red lights or stop signs. • Failure to yield right of way, particularly at uncontrolled or side street-controlled intersections. • Distracted driving • Speeding and/or aggressive driving Common causes of rear end collisions include: • Distracted driving • Tailgating or aggressive driving • Speeding • Heavy traffic Most crashes reported were a result of unsafe speed or right of way violations, which align with the crash types. Evaluating traffic patterns at the side street stop -controlled intersections, narrowing the roadway to reduce crossing and turning distance, physical improvements to reduce speeds and enforcement are potential measures to offset the current crash trends and patterns along First Street.