STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: July 15, 2025
To: Honorable Mayor & City Council
From: Shana Epstein, Director of Public Works
Mark Stainbrook, Chief of Police
Daren Grilley, Assistant Director of Public Works/City Engineer Subject:
Attachments:
Benedict Cañon Drive Safety Improvements
1. Conceptual Design
2. Existing Striping in Los Angeles
3. Public Notice
INTRODUCTION
In early 2025, the City received complaints from several residents on and along Benedict Cañon Drive expressing the need for roadway safety measures to address excessive vehicle speeding and problematic driver behaviors, such as unsafe passing. Residents reported seeing multiple car crashes over the years, some of which have resulted in property damage to their homes.
DISCUSSION
Benedict Cañon Drive is approximately 40-feet wide (the street width varies by several feet in some sections) with one travel lane in each direction and on-street parking on both sides. When parked vehicles are present, the effective width of the travel lanes is approximately 13-14 feet, which is much wider than even freeway travel lanes. When parked vehicles are not present, travel lanes are about 20-feet wide. Several studies, including a 2023 investigation by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health1, have found a correlation between wide travel lanes and excessive speed and increased crash risk.
To address these issues, the Public Works Department, in consultation with the Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD), has developed a striping plan that will add painted edge lines between the travel lanes and parking lanes (Attachment 1) that will deter excessive vehicle speeds and unsafe passing. The edge lines will provide 11-foot wide travel lanes and 9-foot 1 Hamidi, Shima, Reid Ewing, Ebrahim Azimi, Mohamad Tayarani, Bahar Azin, Justyna Kaniewska, Dong-ah Choi, Hassan Ameli, and Duman Bahrami-Rad. A National Investigation on the Impacts of Lane Width on Traffic Safety:
Narrowing Travel Lanes as an Opportunity to Promote Biking and Pedestrian Facilities Within the Existing Roadway Infrastructure. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, November 2023. https://narrowlanes.americanhealth.jhu.edu/report/JHU-2023-Narrowing-Travel-Lanes-Report.pdf.
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Meeting Date: July 15, 2025
parking lanes. The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Urban Street Design Guide2 indicates that 11-foot travel lanes are suitable for streets such as Benedict Cañon Drive with one lane in each direction and truck traffic3. This striping configuration is currently in place in Los Angeles to the north (Attachment 2) and would be extended south into Beverly Hills. The changes would not eliminate any travel lanes or on-street parking spaces.
In addition to the painted edge lines, the City would use striping to address safety and operational issues at complex intersections. For example, turn lanes would be added on Benedict Cañon Drive onto northbound Tower Road to increase capacity at the intersection.
Additionally, the painted edge line would be extended from northbound Benedict Cañon Drive onto the approach to northbound Summit Drive to reduce the curb radius, which will help slow vehicle speeds as drivers turn right across the pedestrian path of travel. The City is also in the process of updating the signal timing along the corridor to further improve traffic flow during congested hours.
Installation would be completed through the City’s annual pavement marking project in Fiscal Year 2025-26. In the meantime, BHPD has provided increased enforcement in this area and will continue to monitor the situation.
Traffic and Parking Commission Feedback
At the June 5, 2025, Traffic and Parking Commission meeting, three residents provided comments. One resident expressed concerns with excessive vehicle speeding, unsafe passing, and collisions on Benedict Cañon Drive but thought the proposed edge lines would not go far enough to address the issues. She suggested different traffic calming measures, such as speed humps (which are not appropriate for streets such as Benedict Cañon Drive due to the volume of traffic and speed limit) and automated speed enforcement cameras (which are not currently allowed for most cities in California, including Beverly Hills).
Another resident expressed concern that the proposed edge lines would increase congestion by discouraging drivers traveling side-by-side in the single, wide travel lanes when parked vehicles are not present (which is illegal and unsafe).
One resident suggested that a right-turn only lane be created from northbound Benedict Cañon Drive onto northbound Tower Road to reduce intersection delay, especially when drivers on Benedict Cañon Drive have a red light and may block drivers wishing to turn right onto Tower Road (this is included in the proposed design).
A fourth resident submitted a speaker card but left prior to public comment. Staff contacted the resident after the meeting, and he expressed support for the proposal to help address excessive vehicle speeding. He also expressed support for speed humps and automated speed enforcement cameras which, as noted above, cannot be pursued.
The Traffic and Parking Commission voted 4-0-1 in support of the proposal, including the rightturn only lane at Tower Road, to help address excessive vehicle speeds and unsafe passing, and improve traffic operations at the Benedict Cañon Drive/Tower Road intersection. 2 National Association of City Transportation Officials. "Lane Width." Urban Street Design Guide. New York: Island Press, 2013. https://nacto.org/publication/urban-street-design-guide/street-design-elements/lane-width. 3 Benedict Cañon Drive is not a City-designated heavy haul route, but it is classified as a “Major Collector” and is a regional north-south route for a wide range of vehicles, including trucks.
Meeting Date: July 15, 2025
Community Outreach
To provide notice regarding this item at the City Council meeting, the City mailed a notice (Attachment 3) to 226 addresses within approximately 500 feet of the corridor. Additionally, the City also placed double-sided A-frame signs with information from the notice at six locations along Benedict Cañon Drive. The City also mailed a notice and placed A-frame signs on the street to provide notice regarding the Traffic and Parking Commission meeting.
FISCAL IMPACT
Installation of the striping modifications is estimated to cost under $5,000. Funding for the annual pavement marking project is available in CIP 00863: Street Sign and Striping for Fiscal Year 2025-26. The pavement marking project will come forward to City Council for consideration at a future meeting.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that City Council provide direction on the proposed lane striping to address safety concerns on Benedict Cañon Drive.
Mark Stainbrook,
Chief of Police
Shana Epstein,
Director of Public Works
Approved By Approved By
Attachment 1
11-ft 11-ft
Benedict Cañon Drive
9-ft9-ft
Typical Cross Section
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Typical Block
Benedict Cañon Drive
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Benedict Cañon Drive / Tower Road
Benedict Cañon Drive
Tower Road
New right turn lane
New left turn lane
Benedict Cañon Drive / Summit Drive
Benedict Cañon Drive Summit Drive
STOP
Attachment 2
Benedict Canyon Drive in Los Angeles
Attachment 3
WHAT:
• Pavement spot repairs throughout the City.
•
WHAT:
WHEN:
WHERE:
MEETING NOTICE
City of Beverly Hills
Public Works Department
345 Foothill Road
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
www.beverlyhills.org
For questions:
askBH- Customer Relations
Tel: 310.285.1000
Email: [email protected]
Beverly Hills City Council to
review proposed striping
modifications to address safety
concerns on Benedict Cañon
Drive
DATE: Tuesday, July 15, 2025
TIME: 2:30 p.m., or as soon there-
after as the matter may be
heard
The meeting will be held at
Beverly Hills City Hall Council
Chambers, broadcast live on
BHTV Channel 10 on Spectrum
Cable, and webcast live at
www.beverlyhills.org/watchlive
Project: City Council Meeting –
Benedict Cañon Drive Safety
Improvements
Dear Community Member,
The City invites your participation in review of proposed striping modifications to address safety concerns on
Benedict Cañon Drive.
This proposal includes adding a painted edge line on the right side, between the travel lanes and parking lanes, to reduce excessive vehicle speeds and unsafe passing. The changes would not eliminate any travel lanes or on-street parking spaces.
Typical Cross-section Showing Proposed Edge Line
When available, the meeting agenda with staff report
and details on how to participate and provide public
comment will be posted at:
www.beverlyhills.org/CityCouncilMeetings
Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Beverly Hills will make reasonable efforts to accommodate persons with disabilities. If you require special assistance, please call (310)285-1000 (voice) or (310) 285-6881 (TTY). Providing at least forty-eight (48) hours advance notice will help to ensure availability of services. City Hall, including the Council Chamber and Room 280A, is wheelchair accessible. The City Hall Council Chamber and Room 280A are also equipped with audio equipment for the hearing impaired.
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PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
Benedict Caiion Drive
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