Repeated crashes at the same intersection raise a question for many drivers: What does it take to get upgraded stop signs or traffic signals?
Two vehicles collided at the intersection of Osos and Pacific Streets in San Luis Obispo on Monday, a scene which local business owners and residents told KSBY Reporter Jessica Roe has become a familiar and repeated sight.
Austin McDaniel owns McDaniel Court Reporting on the corner where the accident happened.
“This isn’t the first time I’ve seen a crash here," McDaniel said. "It happens like every four months.”
McDaniel said it was only a matter of time before another one happened.
"A light would be fine, maybe some yield signs," he said. "Just if everyone slows down, maybe it will be better because right now, it’s almost guaranteed to create another accident.”
Luke Schwartz, the City of San Luis Obispo's Transportation Manager, leads a team that analyzes why and when accidents happen. If speeding or other problems become a pattern, a study is needed to determine which changes to consider.
"There's a lot of factors we consider. We look at — is the route a primary emergency response route? Would putting in a stop sign or traffic signal create backups that might slow the ability of a firetruck or an ambulance to get places on those primary routes?" Schwartz explained.
Schwartz said the City of San Luis Obispo is considering several options to determine what changes are needed at an intersection after repeated accidents. Options include parking the city's mobile speed check trailer near an accident scene to encourage drivers to slow down, installing a permanent illuminated speed check signal, lowering the speed limit, or eliminating a left-hand turn option.
Cities like San Luis Obispo follow state uniform traffic laws as set forth in the CalTrans Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 2026.
Major changes to any intersection, such as installing all-way stop signs or a traffic signal, require engineering studies and data to justify a change. For example, five crashes in 12 months are required to warrant four-way stop signs.
While crash numbers at the intersection of Osos and Pacific streets do not yet meet the threshold required for a four-way stop, the city can explore the other options listed above.
It is not uncommon for the city to take action after receiving requests through the Ask SLO app or public comment at a city council meeting.
At a June 2 meeting, San Luis Obispo resident Michael Leibovich spoke about speeding concerns near Broad and South streets, specifically what he described as excessive speeding on Funston Avenue.
"Not just a little too fast, but fast enough that I feel it in my body when I am standing next to our three-year-old in our front yard," Leibovich said.
The city's mobile speed check trailer has since been deployed in that area.
"It just flashes the actual speed someone is going and gives them a warning to slow down to the posted speed limit," Schwartz said.
Leibovich told KSBY Reporter Jessica Roe on Tuesday that he still has concerns and feels the issue in his neighborhood still needs to be fully addressed.
He and his neighbors raised the issue of traffic cutting through using Funston between Lawton and Broad streets, to avoid the light at Broad and South, often at unsafe speeds on neighborhood streets where young kids, cyclists, and pedestrians are active. He is also concerned about whether the mobile speed-check trailer is fully functional.
Roe personally observed what appeared to be long periods where the lights were not working on the trailer, and notified Schwartz at the city, who reported back that he will promptly check the radar trailer sign on Lawton to confirm it is functioning as intended.
If you have a story idea you would like to send to KSBY Reporter Jessica Roe, you can reach her directly via email at jessica.roe@ksby.com.
