Los Alamos County removes five Central Avenue parking spaces for safety
Five Central Avenue parking spaces near downtown crosswalks are now blocked off, as Los Alamos County trades curbside parking for clearer sight lines.
Five on-street parking spaces along Central Avenue between 15th Street and 20th Street are now off-limits, with yellow diagonal crosshatching and yellow curb paint marking the change near crosswalks where drivers and people walking had limited visibility.
Los Alamos County said in its May 21 notice that the move is meant to improve sight lines at the crossing approaches and make pedestrians easier to see from the road. The county framed the change as part of ongoing efforts to create safer travel conditions for all roadway users, and it asked motorists to obey the new parking prohibition so the visibility improvement would actually work. Public Works is handling the change, with contact listed at 505-662-8150 and lacpw@losalamosnm.gov.
The practical effect is a small loss of curbside parking in exchange for a safer crossing environment in the heart of town, where short local trips, errands, library visits, school-related travel and event parking all compete for space. For walkers crossing Central Avenue, especially students and older residents using the corridor, the concern is straightforward: a parked vehicle can hide someone stepping into a crosswalk. By removing the five spaces, the county is trying to reduce that risk before it turns into a crash.
The decision also fits into a larger county push around pedestrian safety in Los Alamos, a community of about 19,000 residents. The County Council adopted a Pedestrian Master Plan on Aug. 26, 2025, setting priorities for safety, connectivity, equity, health and vibrancy under Vision Zero and the Safe Systems Approach. Nearby corridor work is already underway as well: the Trinity Drive Safety and ADA Improvements project, approved May 19 and valued at $6.75 million, includes an 8-foot multiuse path from 20th Street to the Justice Center and a Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon at Trinity Drive and 20th Street.
The Central Avenue striping change also echoes earlier downtown efforts. A 2014 streetscape grant funded benches, trash and recycling receptacles, bike racks and LED pedestrian and street lights between 15th and 20th streets, and Los Alamos MainStreet has said the Central Avenue streetscape work advanced downtown goals of walkability and pedestrian friendliness. Now, with the county marking five spaces out of service, the message is that downtown safety is being treated as a street-design issue as much as an enforcement issue.
This article was produced by Prism’s automated news system from verified source data, official records, and press releases, then run through automated quality and moderation checks before publishing. The system is built and supervised by the people who set the standards it runs under. Read our full AI policy.
Did this article answer your question?
