> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # No speed racer, no speed racer - URL: https://www.smdp.com/no-speed-racer-no-speed-racer/ - Published: 2007-04-09T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T00:28:11.000Z - Author: Kevin Herrera - Tags: local, Santa Monica, #archive-import SAN VICENTE The brake is on the left. For some reason, many drivers forget that when traveling on a stretch of San Vicente Boulevard between 26th and Seventh streets — an area known for speeding. It has become such a problem here that resident David Burke has trouble sleeping at night. He’s often awakened by the sound of cars zooming by, their engines growling as drivers eat up the road like they were in the Daytona 500. “It’s maddening at times,” said Burke, who likes to sleep with his windows open to enjoy the cool evening breeze. “People are definitely driving 89 mph … I think everyone who has been to my house at least twice has gotten a speeding ticket, including myself.” In the last six months, Santa Monica police officers have issued over 600 traffic citations on San Vicente Boulevard, 525 specifically for those exceeding the speed limit, which set at 35 mph, according to Lt. Clinton Muir, of the SMPD’s traffic services division. Aside from Pacific Coast Highway, San Vicente attracts more lead foots than any other street in the city, Muir said, prompting stricter enforcement and the placement of mobile speedometers and other measures to make drivers more aware of how fast they are going. “We have spoken with many residents in the area who are concerned about it and we have worked very closely with them to address it,” Muir said. Some homeowners specifically asked for officers to park in their driveways so that they could better catch speeders in the act. “The cops have been wonderful,” said Charlene Earnest, who has lived on San Vicente Boulevard near 14th Street for nearly 30 years and has seen the number of car accidents decrease over the years, which she believes is a direct result of better enforcement. “I really have no complaints,” she added. “It’s a speedway, but we’ve pretty much gotten used to it.” While no one knows for sure why people drive as fast as they do, many believe it’s because of the lack of traffic stops and the wide lanes, making it feel more like a highway than a residential street. Also, many homes are set back on a hill or have high walls with hedges facing the street, making it seem even less like a neighborhood and more like a drag strip. “Why not speed?” Burke said. “It’s a wide boulevard and in this city, you can never drive fast. There’s too much traffic and the streets are all really small and clearly residential, not like here.” The boulevard is also a major east-west thoroughfare, attracting drivers who are looking for the quickest way to the beach or the Westside. “I think people are just in a hurry and this is the fastest route because there aren’t a lot of stops,” said Josh Raphaelson, a homeowner who tries to avoid parking his car on the street because “there have been some hit and runs.” “I don’t think more signals are the trick though,” he said. “That would be more of a nuisance, create more noise with people waiting at the lights and it would waste more gas. I think we need to just continue to make people more aware of the limit and keep up the enforcement. Officers have been really helpful with their patrols.” All along the boulevard there are signs warning people about the speed limit and that officers are watching with radar guns, ready to ticket those who have a need for speed. Officers communicate regularly with city staff about other traffic claming measures that could be put in place. The speedometers have been effective, Muir said, but “these days cars are made to ride so smoothly and quietly that people don’t realize how fast they are going sometimes.” “With the placement of the speedometers, drivers do tend to slow down when they see them,” Muir said. “It also lets residents and drivers know that we are trying to step-up enforcement in the area and that we are watching.” Burke suggested more patrols at night to catch potential drunk drivers leaving bars and nightclubs. That, he said, could cut down on a lot of accidents. Earlier this year, a suspected drunk driver destroyed his Lamborghini when he sideswiped five parked cars at the corner of San Vicente Boulevard and Ocean Avenue. The accident occurred at about 2:30 a.m. Witnesses said they heard a high-powered car going up and down the street shortly before the accident. “The most important thing is that nobody gets hurt,” Raphaelson said as he pointed down to the large, grass and coral tree covered median, a popular route for joggers. “The biggest concern is for safety. I think everyone has a tendency to drive a little faster than the posted speed limit, but there’s no excuse for going 20 or 30 miles over \[the speed limit\].” *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 9, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/040907.pdf?ref=smdp.com)