Dear editor,
In the article “Mission Valley keeps getting more roads — and more traffic,” (published Jan. 9), the three quoted expert sources are out of touch and misguided as to the problems of residents in the area of Friars Road and the 163 interchange. My wife and I have lived at the Union Square condos — approximately a quarter of a mile from the interchange — for more than fifteen years and have seen nothing but more problems from the added traffic and lack of direction in the area. The worst was this past holiday season, when hundreds of thousands of vehicles were pumped into the area for shopping at the nearby centers. On one car trip, it took 20 minutes to get from our condo to the interchange. And now these “experts” are saying that no new roads are needed or planned? What about the five thousand new condos across Friars Road at Civita that will add thousands of new vehicles daily? Where is the expert planning for this mess? Removing the pedestrian overpass at Friars and Frazee is a huge mistake as it would help alleviate a huge traffic congestion problem and also provide better access to the highly touted mass transit access just a block away at the Hazard Center station near Union Square. It seems to me that these “experts” need to spend a little time in the area and actual see the problems instead of relying on unreliable studies.
—Mr. and Mrs. Bob Lampert
