Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Where hubcaps fly in O.B.

"If it hadn't been late at night with less traffic, he would have been killed."

Recent photo of the "tire monster"
Recent photo of the "tire monster"

A sign warning of the ultra-slender median on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard (at Voltaire) was run over sometime during the early hours of March 7.

Karen Hoffman (not her real name), who lives nearby the intersection, has dubbed the median the “tire monster.” She remembers seeing it appear before Thanksgiving 2015 with no warning signs.

"Before the city put warning signs up, the median was almost invisible," Hoffman said on March 10. "It [was] gray, so it just blended in….

"It's terrible for such a high-traffic area. A turn signal would have been a much better idea. Cars cross right over it to make a left all the time. I've seen several drivers hit the median and blow out their tires and send their hubcaps flying. I've seen that at least seven to eight times….”

Sponsored
Sponsored
Tire monster sometime in November 2015

The worst incident Hoffman says she witnessed was in November 2015, before the median had been painted.

“I saw an old homeless man, about 65 to 70 years old, trip right over the median and fall into oncoming traffic. If it hadn't been late at night with less traffic, he would have been killed."

Hoffman doesn't remember seeing a warning sign until about three weeks after the median appeared.

On March 11, Bill Harris of the city's Streets Division said that records indicated the median was installed in September 2015, with warning signs installed a few days later. Harris said, "It was a condition of the adjacent development that was going up around the same time. It was meant to help traffic flow and to control left turns."

Even though multiple residents say they recall the median warning sign being destroyed more than once, Harris said, "We are unaware of any other incidents. There is no report of a repair. We do, however, have street crews that are self-directing; they might have fixed the sign and it didn't count."

Harris said the cost of repairing the recently downed sign will be $100.

When asked if there are flexible signs that could withstand a hit from a car, Harris said, "There are such things, though I'm not sure it would be appropriate for this median. We are bound by the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices state-wide requirements. For this location, the traffic engineer team did not believe a flexible sign was allowed."

On March 10, I asked John Ambert, the chair of the Ocean Beach planning board, if this median gets more action than others in the area. Ambert replied, "This is a busy intersection that often gets crowded from people leaving dog beach and heading north to the freeway. While I wouldn't say running over medians is the norm, this intersection may be different because it sees a high volume of traffic."

Regarding the penalty for anyone destroying a median warning sign, Mark Herring from the San Diego Police Department told me on March 11, "The penalty varies based on the value of the sign and the person’s criminal history."

Herring directed me to the California Penal Code 594 covering vandalism. Because in this case the repair cost is less than $400, if convicted the penalty would be up to one year in a county jail and/or up to a $1000 fine. If previously convicted on a similar offense, the fine can go as high as $5000.

As of March 11, Hoffman confirmed that no cones or signage are on the median.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Second largest yellowfin tuna caught by rod and reel

Excel does it again
Recent photo of the "tire monster"
Recent photo of the "tire monster"

A sign warning of the ultra-slender median on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard (at Voltaire) was run over sometime during the early hours of March 7.

Karen Hoffman (not her real name), who lives nearby the intersection, has dubbed the median the “tire monster.” She remembers seeing it appear before Thanksgiving 2015 with no warning signs.

"Before the city put warning signs up, the median was almost invisible," Hoffman said on March 10. "It [was] gray, so it just blended in….

"It's terrible for such a high-traffic area. A turn signal would have been a much better idea. Cars cross right over it to make a left all the time. I've seen several drivers hit the median and blow out their tires and send their hubcaps flying. I've seen that at least seven to eight times….”

Sponsored
Sponsored
Tire monster sometime in November 2015

The worst incident Hoffman says she witnessed was in November 2015, before the median had been painted.

“I saw an old homeless man, about 65 to 70 years old, trip right over the median and fall into oncoming traffic. If it hadn't been late at night with less traffic, he would have been killed."

Hoffman doesn't remember seeing a warning sign until about three weeks after the median appeared.

On March 11, Bill Harris of the city's Streets Division said that records indicated the median was installed in September 2015, with warning signs installed a few days later. Harris said, "It was a condition of the adjacent development that was going up around the same time. It was meant to help traffic flow and to control left turns."

Even though multiple residents say they recall the median warning sign being destroyed more than once, Harris said, "We are unaware of any other incidents. There is no report of a repair. We do, however, have street crews that are self-directing; they might have fixed the sign and it didn't count."

Harris said the cost of repairing the recently downed sign will be $100.

When asked if there are flexible signs that could withstand a hit from a car, Harris said, "There are such things, though I'm not sure it would be appropriate for this median. We are bound by the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices state-wide requirements. For this location, the traffic engineer team did not believe a flexible sign was allowed."

On March 10, I asked John Ambert, the chair of the Ocean Beach planning board, if this median gets more action than others in the area. Ambert replied, "This is a busy intersection that often gets crowded from people leaving dog beach and heading north to the freeway. While I wouldn't say running over medians is the norm, this intersection may be different because it sees a high volume of traffic."

Regarding the penalty for anyone destroying a median warning sign, Mark Herring from the San Diego Police Department told me on March 11, "The penalty varies based on the value of the sign and the person’s criminal history."

Herring directed me to the California Penal Code 594 covering vandalism. Because in this case the repair cost is less than $400, if convicted the penalty would be up to one year in a county jail and/or up to a $1000 fine. If previously convicted on a similar offense, the fine can go as high as $5000.

As of March 11, Hoffman confirmed that no cones or signage are on the median.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Trump names local supporter new Border Czar

Another Brick (Suit) in the Wall
Next Article

Second largest yellowfin tuna caught by rod and reel

Excel does it again
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader