Editor:
I live a block from the intersection of 17th and Marine streets and was saddened but not surprised by the collision between a skateboarder and a driver recently.
That intersection, where three streets come together, was almost invented for accidents because 17th Street turns into a steep hill a block north of the site of the collision. Several years ago, we neighbors on Ashland, 17th and Wellesley were so concerned about the fact that pedestrians often cannot see cars coming up the hill that we came together to persuade the city to put in a four-way stop sign.
The only surprise — given how often my husband and I have seen skateboarders blithely sailing down the 17th Street hill and drivers doing a California roll at the stop signs — is that it did not happen sooner and has not happened more often.
Joan Walston
Santa Monica
