Commentary: Two-way Tejon won't magically solve downtown problems

Every few years, the idea of returning Tejon Street to its original two-way configuration returns to public debate.

In the past, the debate has been short-lived and the outcome predictable, as those most affected by any change -- i.e., downtown merchants and property owners -- have strenuously lobbied against it.

But this time was different.

Thanks largely to the conclusions of a study commissioned by the Downtown Partnership that predicted considerable economic benefits from such a change, the downtown business community overwhelmingly supported the change. On Tuesday, a unanimous City Council voted to spend $125,000 to make Tejon a two-way street for its entire length.

According to the study, daily sales at bars and restaurants could increase by about $46,000 and daily sales at other establishments could increase by about $60,000 -- an almost 53 percent increase.

Understandably, those estimates caught the attention of downtown business and property owners, who have struggled with lagging sales and relatively high vacancy rates.

As a downtown business, we certainly hope for the best -- but allow us to express a certain skepticism.

Intuitively, it seems to us that any two-way reconfiguration would increase congestion, increase the likelihood of auto- pedestrian accidents and make parking more difficult. That intuition is supported by a 2005 report from the Independence Institute, titled

"No Two Ways About It: One-Way Streets Are Better Than Two-Way" by Michael Cuneen and Randal O'Toole.

Describing the effects of two-way conversions in Denver, the authors wrote that "... planners have converted one-way streets to two-way traffic even though all available research shows that one- way streets are much safer for both autos and pedestrians. Denver planners measured the safety of streets before and after conversion from one-way to two-way traffic, and found that the conversion led to a 37-percent increase in accidents. Rather than conclude that such conversions are a bad idea, the planners merely said they expected this result."

We were especially skeptical of the report's assertion that motorists wishing to park on the opposite side of the street could simply make a u-turn from the center lane.

That seems problematical, even dangerous.

And as Cuneen and O'Toole wrote, any economic benefits are at best uncertain.

"The variables affecting customer purchases are so many that the effect of one-way streets cannot be isolated from other factors," the report said.

While no one can predict with certainty how the conversion will effect downtown, one thing is certain: it has a $125,000 price tag. It's possible that the money could have been better spent elsewhere.

We believe that downtown's health is more dependent upon the quality and variety of downtown destinations and businesses rather than upon the configuration of downtown streets. Successful downtowns -- Santa Fe, Denver's LoDo district -- are often confusing mazes, virtually impossible for first-time visitors to negotiate. Yet they're also diverse, lively, exciting and interesting places -- and people somehow find their way there.

Two-way streets are fine, we suppose, but no one should imagine that reconfiguring traffic movements will magically solve downtown's problems.

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