Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Ypar Final in Apa Format
Ypar Final in Apa Format
Mr. Lopez
Table of Contents
Abstract …………………………………………………………………………………...............3
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..4
Research Question………………………………………………………………………...4
Relevant Literature………………..……………………………………………….……...5
Methodology………………………………………………………………………………..…….6
Results………………………………………………………………………………………..…...6
Implications……………………………………………………………………………………….7
References….…………………………………………………………………...………………..10
Appendices…………………………………………………………………………………..…...11
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Abstract
In this paper, sidewalks in the North East San Fernando Valley are discussed. Many people do
not realize that some sidewalks are missing, broken, or made of dirt. We realized that a sidewalk
we see every day is missing and it is quite dangerous for people who walk on it daily. The
research discovered that Los Angeles has a plan to fix sidewalks, but lack of awareness of how to
report leaves the area low on priority. Surveys were sent to San Fernando High School students
to get opinions of sidewalks are in their community. Many people did say their sidewalk was
normal, but others said their sidewalk was not in the best condition. Sixty students had answered
this survey. If more people of the community filled it out, the statistics would increase
significantly. We also wanted to bring this issue to many people's attention so they can help
make a change.
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Introduction
The area of focus throughout this research is the North East San Fernando Valley (see
Appendix A). Specifically the cities of Arleta, Mission Hills, Pacoima, and San Fernando. A lot
of the streets in these areas lack sidewalks (see Appendix B). This is not confined to residential
streets but extends to busy main streets. The lack of sidewalks leaves pedestrians walking in the
way of traffic and makes it not only inconvenient but a hazard. Many of the existing sidewalks
are also in poor condition, some close to unuseful. The status of these sidewalks make it difficult
18.6% of the city of San Fernando live below the poverty line(Towncharts. 2018). 91.6%
of San Fernando is Hispanic. The median household income of the area is $55,734. Because of
the income level, the average families who consist of more than four members, may not have
access to a car and find themselves walking more often than not, making safety during this travel
essential. Sidewalks help provide this safety for parents and their young ones.
Research Question
Many sidewalks in the North East San Fernando Valley are missing, broken, or made out
of dirt. This topic is important to address because the lack of sidewalks can cause injuries for
everyone especially for handicapped, people who are blind, and elderly. The main research
question is “How does improper safety measures in sidewalks in the community and its
members?”
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Relevant Literature
The background research conducted covered general benefits of sidewalks and the
differences they make. According to the Federal Highway Administration, sidewalks reduce the
number of pedestrian accidents win motor vehicles by 88%. This is because it provides a
separate walking area and keeps the pedestrian out of traffic’s way. Sidewalks also pave the way
for a healthier community. This applies to both mental and physical health — the reason being
Research also explained Los Angeles’s plan to repair the sidewalks. Los Angeles has
committed to spending $31 to $63 million a year for 30 years or $1.4 billion fixing sidewalks
(Barragan. 2015). Safe Sidewalks LA is the program running the repairs. The program is based
on complaints, meaning the sidewalks with the most reported complaints are prioritized. The
areas of focus have complained before, but seem to stop after nothing being done about it
immediately. It can be assumed that the members are unaware that the program is
complaint-based because the program is not promoted very much. The lack of complaints makes
it difficult for San Fernando to get the repairs in a timely matter. San Fernando has plenty of
sidewalks that are in terrible condition and are hazards, but newly gentrified areas such as
Downtown LA will get repaired quicker because the people complain about their sidewalks. The
plan to repair sidewalks does not benefit the people in the field of focus until it is promoted
more.
Methodology
A survey was the easiest way to get data because it can be sent out to San Fernando High
School students. Sixty students had filled out our survey. Majority of the students were from
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Pacoima. The cities in the survey were Arleta, Mission Hills, Pacoima, San Fernando, and if
people do not live in this area, they could put in a zip code. The type of questions was closed
such as “Does your street have a sidewalk?”. The types of questions that were asked for a reason
so we can see if the people in the community are affected by the condition of their sidewalks. We
also wanted to know if injuries had occurred because of the condition of the sidewalk Majority of
people had said that they do not know if injuries had happened, but some people did say they
knew of an injury that almost or did happen. That is still dangerous even if only 60 people had
taken the survey, and if more people in the community did answer it could expand.
Another way for conducting research was by using maps. Maps are beneficial because
they showd condition the sidewalks were in. Also, if people live near some sidewalks that were
not in the best condition, we could also see. By seeing the condition they were in we could
actually see if many sidewalks missing, broken, or made out of dirt. Although most sidewalks
were in its best condition some were still bad. Such as how a main sidewalk/street that people in
the community tend to see every day in is missing or broken which is a big problem because
mostly everyone walks on that sidewalk and an injury may occur. Although not many injuries
Results
In an attempt to understand the sidewalk dilemma in the Northeast San Fernando Valley,
the surveys read that 75% of people had normal cement sidewalks (see Appendix C). Making
another 25% with either broken or dirt pathways. The survey also reports that about half of the
people had known about injuries that almost occurred because of the quality of the sidewalks.
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According to the survey, many of the community members feel that the lack of sidewalks hurts
More attention was brought to this issue in their everyday lives after learning more about
this plight. This made everyday occurrences that one may often ignore or not take into
consideration a bigger issue. An example is a mother with a child in a stroller and another young
boy walking by her side. They cross from one side dirt pathway to the other that is terribly
uneven. She keeps hold of her older boys hand while trying to lift over the bumps and cracks of
the pathway.
Another example is two people going on their morning walk on the side of the street.
They walk the opposite way of traffic to be aware of oncoming cars. Instead of walking on a
sidewalk which allows them to communicate, they must walk one-behind-the-other to maintain
their safety (see Appendix D). These occurrences usually wouldn’t faze anyone, but once they
learn more about the effects of the sidewalks, their eyes are open up to how often it happens.
Implications
The number of students from the sample taken from San Fernando High School who has
pathways made of dirt and had broken sidewalks was astonishing. Although it may not seem like
a significant number of students are affected, the number would grow considerably. All of these
students do not have access to a safe walking space where they can exercise or commute, and
this applies to the whole neighborhood, including right outside their school. The sidewalk
directly in front of San Fernando high school is cracked and unlevel (see Appendix E). This
sidewalk is where hundreds of students walk on daily. As one may conclude, this is a terrible
hazard to everyone who passes this. The school’s very own magnet coordinator has fallen and
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broken her rib there in the past. In addition to this cracked sidewalk is the walkway across the
street where students may also walk before crossing(see Appendix F). This is a dirt pathway that
is somewhat level making it safer than most. It still presents a hazard in poor conditions. These
are issues just outside one school; the conditions only get worse as the radius of focus is
expanded.
The number of students that knew about an injury shows just how often it happens.
Imagine how many injuries would be reported if the survey had been taken by the whole
community. Some of these injuries result in lawsuits — this especially true around government
buildings, explaining why those sidewalks are prioritized. The money used to pay those lawsuits
could be going toward the actual fixing of the sidewalks, but since the issue was never resolved,
it will be paying someone off instead. The number of accidents not only demonstrates how
there’s no money going to repairing the area’s sidewalks but demonstrates how the conditions of
When given a designated area to walk, it is utilized by the people to the North East San
Fernando Valley. A great example is the new San Fernando Bike path (see Appendix G). It
became a place for people commute, exercise, walk their dogs, bike, and more (see Appendix H).
If more pathways like these were made, they would be extremely beneficial to the community.
In conclusion, sidewalks are a big problem in the NorthEast San Fernando Valley and
that many sidewalks are missing, broken, or made of dirt. Recommendations for everyone is tell
more people about this issue and go to the Safe Sidewalks La website, click the 3-1-1 link, report
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a sidewalk/pothole, and continue to fill out the rest. An action could be that people in the
community will go to the city council and address the issue as many times as they can. This will
place the North East San Fernando Valley a bit higher on the priority list. The important part of
References
Safety Benefits of Walkways, Sidewalks, and Paved Shoulders (n.d.). Retrieved October 27,
https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Safe-Sidewalks-LA.html?soid=1105979720716&aid=g7Zr
J_GoqjY
https://www.aarp.org/livable-communities/info-2014/sidewalks-fact-sheet.html
Barragan, B. (2015, June 30). Los Angeles's Most Complained-About Sidewalks: Mapped.
https://la.curbed.com/2015/6/30/9944600/los-angeles-worst-sidewalks
San Fernando Valley CA Demographics data. (n.d.). Retrieved December 6, 2018, from
https://www.towncharts.com/California/Demographics/San-Fernando-Valley-CCD-CA-D
emographics-data.html
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Appendix A:
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Appendix B:
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Appendix C:
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Appendix D:
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Appendix E:
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Appendix F:
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Appendix G:
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Appendix H:
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Appendix I: