By Kaden Scharnow
After the demolition of the overpass on Military West, stop signs have been set up at the cross at the turn into Mary Farmar Elementary. This was due to a commercial vehicle hitting the bridge as it drove by, further damaging it. The city of Benicia decided to demolish it after realizing the damage was too great to repair. A portion of Military West was closed off for a few days, causing inconvenience for students attending Benicia High.
Many students at the high school have been annoyed at the long line of traffic that forms at the stop signs, as multiple crossing guards have tried to keep it slow for elementary students to get across. Parents have also voiced concerns about the safety of the crosswalk, since there’s only two roads leading to the only high school and one to the elementary schools in town, there’s a significant number of parents and students driving to school. Despite the number of crossing guards, the crosswalk is still quite unsafe for small children.
The city of Benicia is suing the company responsible for the damages, but wants to use the money for other projects. This isn’t a great idea as the overpass helps control traffic and keeps children safe from the roads. Many parents, students, and other citizens want the overpass rebuilt stronger. Since no one likes the stop signs currently set up, it would be in the best interest of Benicians for the city to rebuild the overpass. The city of Benicia should comply with citizens’ requests for the rebuilding. The citizens are already outraged with the company responsible for the damage, so it’d be better if they weren’t upset with the city as well.
As of today, the overpass remains demolished and the stop signs remain up.
beniciapaw.com 