Driving

Unsung hero of drivers at 7th and Broadway

buses-7th-broadway.jpgIf you don't get a $234 LAPD ticket this year for turning right at 7th Street and Broadway, you could have D.J. Prator to thank. He lives near the corner and noticed that LAPD traffic officers were always writing tickets there. Intrigued, he checked and found a sign making it illegal for drivers to turn right on the red light between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. But the sign was poorly placed — blocked by buses in the right lane, for instance (see Prator's photo above) — and Prator also noticed that officers seemed to be using the corner as a ticket trap. He also noticed that most of those being written up were Latino, and that some of the drivers were having their cars impounded for turning at the intersection where the signage was poorly placed. He took his share of abuse from cops for photographing the scenes, but the sign did get removed.

Laurel Erickson reports the story for SoCal Connected on KCET.

Prator's website 7th and Broadway.com


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