Encinitas officials urged to keep Santa Fe Drive safety upgrades
California State Sen. Catherine Blakespear returned to Encinitas to urge city leaders to preserve key safety features along Santa Fe Drive, a corridor that recently underwent $4.1 million in improvements, in order to protect the 2,300 students and staff who rely on the busy route each day.
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
ENCINITAS, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) -- California State Senator Catherine Blakespear returned to her Encinitas on Saturday, urging Encinitas leaders to preserve key safety features along Santa Fe Drive, a corridor that just underwent $4.1 million in improvements.
The Santa Fe Drive Corridor Improvements Project covers about a half-mile stretch of road leading to San Dieguito Academy (SDA), where more than 2,300 students and staff rely on the busy route each day.
“I want to recognize that I’m standing here with a large group of advocates with the single message that our road safety is very important to us,” Senator Blakespear said at a press conference.
The push for safety upgrades intensified after a series of crashes on the road, including the June 2023 death of 15-year-old San Dieguito Academy student Brodee Champlain-Kingman, who was riding his e-bike when he was struck and killed.
Blakespear helped secure roughly $3 million in state funding for the western phase of the project, approved in September 2023. But now she and others worry the city may undo progress.
“We are worried that they are going to rip it out,” she said. “What they’ve been saying indicates that’s on the table. Today we are joining together to say, improve, don’t remove this bicycle and pedestrian safety project.”
Encinitas Bike Walk chair Judy Berlfein also spoke out, saying she’s frustrated with the city’s approach.
“We have the money to put the sidewalk in and we have the money to put the bike lanes in, but they’re spending so much time talking about what to do with the western section,” Berlfein said. “There are other small things that need fixing, but they’re very much into saying, ‘oh, I think the best way to do it is to start from scratch.’”
According to the city’s website, the Encinitas City Council voted on Dec. 18, 2024, to defer construction of protected intersections and a signalized crossing near San Dieguito Academy until a later phase, pending further monitoring of the western improvements.
For now, community members and advocates say they’ll keep pushing to make sure the project’s core bike and pedestrian safety elements remain in place.
