Blind Spots and Bureaucracy: Why Pasadena’s DOT Is Driving in the Dark
Pasadena stands at a dangerous crossroads. The City has publicly pledged its commitment to Vision Zero—the goal of eliminating all traffic fatalities and serious injuries—yet, actions taken by the Pasadena Department of Transportation (DOT), led by Director Joaquin Siques, suggest a fundamental detachment from the data required to achieve that vision. The controversy centers on the DOT’s reported decision to cease the routine collection of speed data from the city’s electronic speed feedback signs, effectively creating a critical blind spot in public safety planning.
These speed feedback signs are far more than mere warning displays; they are vital sensors logging every instance of reckless driving on high-risk corridors. They record the 85th percentile speeds, peak speeding hours, and the catastrophic outliers—reports indicate vehicles routinely hit 70 mph or more in posted 35 mph zones. This raw, verifiable data is the lifeblood of modern traffic safety. Under California’s Assembly Bill 43, such metrics are indispensable for justifying and implementing necessary interventions like speed tables, traffic circles, and targeted law enforcement.
Director Siques, who assumed the role in 2024 with a vision of promoting data-driven solutions, now faces scrutiny over a policy that is decidedly data-averse. The reported rationale for stopping the collection—that the manual download process is too time-consuming and burdensome for staff—is a staggering bureaucratic abdication. It suggests that administrative convenience is being prioritized over the measurable, life-saving needs of Pasadena’s most vulnerable road users.
This failure creates a dangerous operational gap. When residents report persistent speeding issues, their pleas are reduced to anecdotal complaints. Without the hard numbers on vehicle speeds and frequency, DOT engineers lack the necessary warrant data—the quantifiable proof—required by state and local regulations to install effective traffic calming infrastructure. The city is therefore willingly tying the hands of the very professionals tasked with protecting the community.
Pasadena’s own collision statistics underscore the urgency: unsafe speeds are consistently cited as a leading factor in serious and fatal crashes. By ignoring the real-time evidence of excessive speed, the DOT is not just failing to collect data; it is actively suppressing the quantifiable truth about danger on its streets. This policy stands in profound and dangerous contradiction to the city’s Vision Zero aspirations and makes a mockery of any subsequent grant applications or public campaigns promoting pedestrian safety.
If Pasadena is serious about its pledge to eliminate traffic deaths, Director Siques and the DOT must immediately reverse this course. The safety of pedestrians and motorists cannot be contingent on bureaucratic preference. The department must not only resume the consistent, timely collection of speed data but also commit to its public dissemination, ensuring that the evidence of danger is transparent and actionable. The cost of data collection is minimal; the cost of this data blindness will inevitably be measured in human lives.
