Mom of teen killed crossing street wants lower speed limit

Carson City resident Katherine Rodriguez, mother of the 14-year-old girl who died after being hit by a vehicle in January, requested a speed limit reduction along North Carson Street during Wednesday’s Carson Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) meeting.

Rodriguez has been advocating for the installation of blinking lights since her daughter’s death. Lexi Rodriguez died Jan. 28 at night at North Carson Street and Nye Lane while attempting to cross the street with her boyfriend, and the driver did not see her.

During public comment, Katherine Rodriguez said Wednesday even if flashing lights are installed at Carson Street and Nye Lane, “it might not be too hard for (drivers) to stop” for pedestrians trying to cross.

“And even if they swerve, maybe they’ll just swerve into another pedestrian or another car,” she said. “I think the speed should be lower.”

The current speed limit at that point of Carson Street is 45 mph.

She also asked for a lower limit along College Parkway near the Parkway Plaza Apartments, where she said she observed many students walk along a busy street daily and are afraid to cross the street.

“I saw two little girls on their bikes the other day trying to cross the street,” she said. “They were standing their bikes for about five minutes before I got out of my car and I walked them through the crosswalk. They were scared. The way I see it, this is the capital of Nevada. This is Carson City. We deserve flashing lights for our kids.”

Rodriguez said it’s important to teach children crosswalk safety in school and at home. She offered to volunteer her time reinforcing this message.

“Just because our kids are in a crosswalk doesn’t mean they’re safe … it doesn’t mean they’re going to make it to the other side,” she said. “I never thought it was really important to drill that into my daughter and into my kids, but I do know.”

The petition begun by Tiara McCullen on www.change.org to install a rectangular rapid flash beacon (RRFB) at the intersection of Carson and Nye has collected more than 1,800 signatures as of Thursday, about 700 shy of its goal, according to the website.

McCullen said it would be simple to install the beacon. Pedestrians would then give a visual alert they’re crossing the street when they cannot make eye contact with passing drivers at night, she said. McCullen said it also takes a community effort to keep everyone safe, such as pedestrians wearing light-colored clothing at night for recognition.

“I’ve seen my neighbors have to stop halfway through the intersection because only certain people can see them crossing,” McCullen said. “But at nighttime I’ve had to use my hazards and my flashers to alert people coming up behind me that there’s someone in the road that I’ve stopped for that they don’t see because it’s not very well lit.”

Chris Martinovich, Carson City transportation manager, explained that safety is considered in every city road project. But he said while the RRFBs can be deployed in certain areas, they’re not appropriate in higher-speed portions of roadways such as the North Carson-Nye intersection. They often create additional rear-end or angled crashes if drivers aren’t paying attention since they’re not a “must-stop area” but places for drivers to yield, he said.

“The Federal Highway Administration, the (Nevada Department of Transportation) and us, we all struggle to put them in high-speed locations,” he said.

Other features such as hybrid beacons and enhanced lighting would be more useful, he said, and in studies the city’s public works department is working on, some of these strategies are being considered for North Carson and Nye, and locations along U.S. 50 and the U.S. 395, he said. The city is working with NV Energy to install additional street lights and fixtures, Martinovich said.