Physical Safety Concern: Need for Traffic Light: This petition is to gather votes that ask the Cypress City Council to install a traffic light at the crosswalk leading to Evergreen Park, on Moody St.

Among all of the beautiful parks in Cypress is Evergreen Park on Moody St. There are a few parking spaces, but a lot of its visitors simply walk there, with their friends, family, pets and, of course, their kids.

When you want to cross the crosswalk on Moody St into Evergreen Park, you'll find that you have to cross 4 lanes of substantially heavy traffic on Moody St. while you veer diagonally across cars that don't stop for you. While stopped by Newman Ave, the visibility of oncoming traffic both from the other side of the street on Newman and on Moody St. is extremely low. Since there is a public utility box on one side of Moody St., it is nearly impossible for oncoming traffic to see anyone standing by, waiting to cross. There are also two residential streets right next to Newman Ave, where traffic could turn from, in addition to the traffic on Newman Ave. Add to this, by the time the drivers see the pedestrians, it is difficult, if not impossible to stop their cars to safely to prevent being rear-ended themselves. 

Compounded with that complexity is the fact that many drivers ignore the 30mph speed limit and routinely go 40, 50, or 60 mph down Moody St. through all hours of the day and night. 

There is a stop light and crosswalk at the intersection of Moody & Lincoln, and another one at Moody & Ball, each are over 0.25 miles one way in the opposite direction of the park. The presence of the cross-walk at Newman Ave. alone is simply not sufficient to stop dangerous speeding down Moody St., and it also don't solve the poor visibility and difficult maneuvering of the crosswalk.

As of the date of this petition, September 26, 2022, there have been two horrific car crashes in Cypress within a half mile radius from each other in the last 24 hours. For each of those, folks ran to the scene moments after it occurred and waited for first responders to arrive. They stood two feet away from the impacted individuals, in one case a pedestrian was killed after fighting for their life (at Orange and Graham) and another incident at Lexington Middle School involving a child. It's something I hope I never have to see with my own eyes. This is far from the first time that there has been a near-fatal or fatal car crash in Cypress, there was another just earlier this month. 

The specific intersection of Moody St. leading up to the park is a very hazardous intersection when considering it's difficult navigation, lack of visibility (both by pedestrians and drivers), 4-lane non-linear cross, and folks deciding to speed heavily and regularly.

When we reached out to the City Council and submitted a request for review of installing a light at this intersection, the response we received is that they would "consider it" after performing a study. 

This petition is to gather votes in support of asking the the City Council of Cypress to install a traffic light at the intersection of Moody St and Newman Ave, leading up to Evergreen Park which would regulate more cautious approaches by vehicles on Moody St., and lead pedestrians safely to the park we all love and enjoy. Using our voice, we can influence the safety and enjoyment of our beautiful city.