Beverly Hills Institutes New Guidelines At Site Of 2 Crashes That Killed LAPD Officers
BEVERLY HILLS (CBSLA.com) — After a series of accidents and the deaths of two LAPD officers, Beverly Hills has adopted measures to increase safety along a stretch of steep road.
In the Trousdale Estates Area of Beverly Hills, traffic officers are making sure heavy trucks don't get on the street where the two officers were killed in separate crashes with construction vehicles earlier this year.
CBS2's Jeff Nguyen was on Loma Vista Drive Thursday when he saw police stop a large truck as it tried to drop off medical supplies at a nearby residence.
The woman receiving the medication had to meet the truck at the bottom of the hill.
"I understand completely why they did it, but this is a health issue," she told Nguyen.
Her frustration is felt by many residents in the area. It began over a moratorium that went into effect after the second deadly crash.
Currently, the maximum weight for vehicles is 26,000 pounds. And the trucks can't have three or more axles.
On Wednesday, the Beverly Hills City Council adopted interim safety measures designed to deal with the numerous construction projects up and around a very steep street.
Under the new measures:
Contractors must submit safety plans to the city for projects that need heavy hauling.
Those trucks must have secondary braking devices.
The city must be provided with 24-hour notice for large deliveries.
The good news for contractors is that the maximum weight goes up to 50,400 pounds.
Mike Hulette is very happy about the new weight limit.
He's been unloading supplies off big trucks onto smaller ones to get them to his work site.
He says that's raised his production costs about 25 percent.
He's hopeful the new increased weight limit will help.
"I'm glad they came to some kind of compromise, because a lot of job up here were completely shut down," Hulette said.
The city says the moratorium will be fully lifted as the new measures are implemented over the next few weeks.
