LADOT Safe Routes to School

The pop-up demonstration at Esperanza Elementary School led to the mayor and city council approving $588,764 to fund the implementation of safety treatments from the school's SRTS Plan.

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is America’s second largest school district with nearly 1,000 schools, each with its own set of traffic safety concerns. The City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s (LADOT) Top 50 Schools with Most Need is prioritized based on the number of vehicle-pedestrian/bike collisions, students who reside within a quarter-mile of the school, students eligible for free-reduced price meals, and lack of prior state/federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) funding. Nelson\Nygaard was hired to coordinate a pop-up demonstration of safety improvements at one of the Top 50 schools to build awareness of upcoming streetscape changes and test the impact of new design concepts on traffic operations. In partnership with LADOT, LAUSD, the LAPD, and Council District 1, Nelson\Nygaard helped select a school site and coordinated the planning and implementation of a two-day demonstration in mid-May 2019.

Continuing long standing involvement in supporting LADOT’s Safe Routes to School program, Nelson\Nygaard facilitated community engagement and provided bilingual support at community walking safety assessments and other community events to share findings/recommended improvements. Our visual communications team developed a branded template for materials consistent with the recognizable Safe Routes to School brand previously developed by Nelson\Nygaard. The firm reviewed countermeasure proposals developed by the prime to integrate unique community context and ensure improved connectivity to existing and future pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure.

Nelson\Nygaard also led the planning, design, and coordination of two pop-up demonstrations at Esperanza Elementary School and Leo Politi Elementary School to provide community members to experience future improvements through short-term installations to allow for community feedback and design refinement through proof of concept. Using temporary materials and paint, changes included a two-way to one-way street conversion; a drop-off and pick-up median and a safety valet lane; a curb extension; and several mid-block crosswalks on Little Street, 7th Street, and Wilshire Boulevard. Significant community outreach took place before and during the event, and staff and volunteers were engaged in programming, placemaking, and evaluation activities. Students, families, and neighborhood residents were consulted for feedback on safety improvements and their experience walking, biking, and driving to and from school, with feedback being overwhelmingly supportive. A press event included remarks from leadership at Esperanza Elementary, LADOT, and Council District 1, as well as students.

Within two months of the event, LADOT announced that the mayor and city council approved $588,764 of bond proceeds of the Westlake Redevelopment Project (CRA\LA) to fund the implementation of a subset of safety treatments from the Esperanza Elementary SRTS Plan. The funding allows LADOT to proceed with the installation of elements from the Little Street Pop-up, including a new traffic signal, crosswalks, curb ramps, a pedestrian median with adjacent parking and valet-only lane, pedestrian-activated flashing beacon, and signage and striping.

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