After the death of a woman in La Jolla, local residents are angry that their complaints about the dangerous intersection did not seem to be taken seriously. 67-year-old Graciella Mejia Martinez was killed earlier this month when she was struck by a pickup truck at La Jolla Mesa Drive and Van Nuys Street. Her granddaughter says that Ms. Martinez was always fearful of crossing that intersection, and local residents say they’ve been fighting since 2000 to get a traffic light or stop sign. They feel the intersection is dangerous because drivers speed through as they use the street as a shortcut. They are concerned that neighborhood children must cross this intersection on the way to school and there is no crossing guard. However, police don’t feel the danger is that serious, and that residents often do not have a realistic view. In researching this type of complaint, they often find that there are not as many accidents as the residents may think, and the dangerous drivers are often the residents themselves. The city’s transportation engineering department has evaluated the intersection four times since 2000, and the road has been narrowed and bright signs have been posted in an attempt to slow down traffic and help drivers notice pedestrians. However, the department did not feel that a traffic light or stop sign were necessary. Residents still insist the intersection is dangerous, and City Councilman Kevin Faulconer has received complaints about the area. After the death of Ms. Martinez, he has ordered a new analysis of the traffic in the Bird Rock neighborhood in order to propose traffic-reducing measures. It should be completed sometime in August. Residents are planning to meet on the corner every Sunday until they feel their concerns are heard.