Lack of crosswalk raises safety concerns at busy La Jolla intersection

At Allen Field in La Jolla, it’s rush hour Sunday, as dozens of families race with their kids to get to soccer games at the park.

“It’s a busy area with a lot of great games going on. If you can’t park here, you have to park across the street,” Ryan Hodson, said.

Families say the intersection at Torrey Pines Road and Glenbrook Way is filled with safety issues. Since the streets lack painted crosswalks, proper warnings, and displays to cross, it’s hard for them to get to Allen Field safely.

“I didn’t know if I was going to be able to cross there, to be honest, I thought I might have to walk down to that corner,” Finch said.

The intersection has a four-way crosswalk, but at first glance, you wouldn’t know it because the street is not properly marked.

“Today we parked across on the other side of the street and it’s the first time we noticed there’s no crosswalk. Yeah, I noticed that, and it was a little concerning,” Michael Finch said.  

The intersection draws traffic year-round because it’s a commonly used street for drivers heading to the UC San Diego campus and a nearby elementary school.

“It makes us feel nervous, you know we have to be really careful and make sure that they’re not going to run across and that the cars won’t hit us,” Christina Bays said.

Paulo Minero once lived in the area.

He said those concerns have been felt by families in the neighborhood for years.

“I remember when our kids were small, we used to have strollers, and we would always try to avoid the intersection here because oftentimes, cars don’t stop and it’s very dangerous,” Minero said.

“Cars are zipping up and down this road at 50+ mph sometimes. I’ve seen a lot of cars run red lights, or failed to slow down,” Kelly Rathbun said.

Kelly Rathbun’s kids have been playing soccer at Allen Field for a few years now.

She reached out to NBC 7 for help.

Rathbun said she’s emailed the City of San Diego multiple times since last fall. She showed NBC 7 several responses she recently received but with no clear timeline as to when something would get done due to current budget constraints.

Rathburn wants the city to act before it’s too late.

“We’re just a little tired of it. There’s you know, over 300 families minimum, I’d say at this field. Even more so in the fall than in the spring. And you know it’s just going to take one car to cause an accident,” Rathbun said.

“You care for the safety of your kids, and it’s not just my kids, I mean there are hundreds of kids playing soccer,” Minero said.

NBC 7 reached out to Councilmember LaCava’s office for comment and is awaiting a response.