When night falls on the edge of Atherton and Menlo Park, an orange glow from older streetlights illuminates the Menlo Park side of El Camino Real.
Across the same six-lane state route, parts of the Atherton side disappear into darkness.
Along this more than two-mile stretch of El Camino Real in Atherton, California, at Valparaiso Avenue, bus driver Jimmy Maerina had seconds to react to a woman with dementia walking in the road. He said his bus headlights were dim and the street was dark.
“Had there been better lighting on the whole street on that whole side of El Camino, that lady could have been walking on that sidewalk and safe on that sidewalk,” said Maerina.
But on that side – the Atherton side – of El Camino Real, there is no sidewalk. During a recent afternoon, NBC Bay Area observed runners, families, dog owners and bikers use this three to four-foot patch of grass and overgrown plants as a pathway to walk next to traffic.
The NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit analyzed 10 years of National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) collision data. 2021 and 2022 are not available due to reporting delays, but between 2011 and 2020, El Camino Real in and along Atherton had a disproportionately high pedestrian death rate per 100,000 residents. The crashes happened both day and night.
Atherton’s pedestrian death rate is significantly higher than major Bay Area cities like San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco and more than double and triple its nearby cities like Redwood City, Menlo Park and San Mateo.
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“It says it’s 35 [MPH] there, but you know, nobody’s going 35 on El Camino Real on this stretch,” said Joie Chen whose mother was killed by a minivan in this area.
“The doctor was very kind, but she said ‘We’re just pouring blood into your mother. She’s gone,” Chen said.
When it comes to streetlights, the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit counted 17 on the Menlo Park side of El Camino Real and four on the Atherton side. The side with the most streetlights, Menlo Park, allows commercial zoning and the lighting that goes with it. The side with only four streetlights, Atherton, is commercial-free.
Atherton has a population of just over 7,000 mostly wealthy residents who value their town’s no-sidewalk, rural charm. But at what cost wonders Chen.
“My mom…I discouraged her from driving. That day she had been for a walk. She was probably going to get toys for her cat,” she said. “The driver never contacted us…And in the police report, he says he thought maybe it was a garbage dumpster or a dog.”
Chen’s mother is one of the four most recent pedestrian deaths on this stretch of El Camino Real.
Pedestrian deaths and injuries on El Camino Real near Atherton, 2012-2023
There were four deaths and nine injuries between Valparaiso Avenue and Selby Lane on El Camino Real between 2012 and 2023.
Source: NHTSA fatality (FARS) data and California Highway Patrol Accident (SWITRS) data
Credit: Sean Myers/ NBC Bay Area
2014 – 32-year-old Shahriar Rahimzadeh of Atherton was killed while crossing near Almendral Avenue. According to his obituary, he was walking home. A source close to the incident said Rahimzadeh may have just gotten off a bus.
2015 – A minivan killed Chen’s 86-year-old mother, Emiko Chen. Police said the cause of the collision is unknown.
2020 – An SUV struck James Lazcano near Watkins Avenue. He siblings said he didn’t have a car and was crossing El Camino Real to get to a bus stop across the street. He was heading to Safeway. According to the coroner’s report, the driver was going 50 MPH in a 35 MPH zone.
2022 – 78-year-old Sol Gloria, a wife and mother with dementia, was killed by a SamTrans bus on the Atherton side of El Camino Real near Valparaiso Avenue. Gloria was walking in the road, and driver was not at fault, according to the traffic report.
“You never expect that it’s going to your family, and then you’re notified that your brother was mowed down,” said Lazcano’s brother Michael Lazcano.
These crashes all happened in the same area where Atherton Police Chief Steven Culley told NBC Bay Area in an email, bike lanes and sidewalks “would improve safety.” This is also where Atherton Mayor Bill Widmer said he doesn’t always feel safe.
“When I bike, I’ve tried to avoid El Camino…I just feel it’s safer to go on another street,” said Mayor Widmer.
“This has been a known issue. People have got to wake up to the fact that everyone’s life matters. Everyone’s life has value,” said Lazcano.
El Camino Real is a state highway and is under Caltrans’ jurisdiction. After more than a month of requests, no one from Caltrans agreed to an interview with the Investigative Unit. The agency sent a statement saying Caltrans “is aware of the pedestrian safety concerns on [El Camino Real]…”
Caltrans said it upgraded five intersections in Atherton and added crosswalk beacons. It also completed several pedestrian safety projects in the area in 2018. The Investigative Unit found more injuries and deaths occurred after the projects. And, when it comes to sidewalks and additional bicycle infrastructure, Caltrans said it’s still working on it.
Mayor Widmer successfully pushed for the installation of a crosswalk beacon at El Camino Real and Almendral Avenue in 2016. But when asked if Atherton officials are interested in adding more pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure to their stretch of El Camino Real, he said not necessarily.
“I don’t know if Caltrans wants to do it, okay? We don’t have the money to put in lights at every location. And, you know, quite frankly, I’m not sure that we need a light in every location,” said Mayor Widmer.
“To me this is a real matter of equity. The people speeding down El Camino are cruising in their Teslas, in their BMWs. But the people who are walking on El Camino—maybe they’re a worker who can only take a bus. Maybe they’re a kid running for the bus. Maybe they’re an unhoused person,” said Chen. “Really, aren’t they the people we should try hardest to take care of?”
Candice Nguyen is the investigative reporter on this story. If you want to reach out to her about this report or if you have a story tip, email her at candice.nguyen@nbcuni.com.
