Alvarado asked his Realtor whether this near accident was a daily occurrence. Alvarado said the agent replied hesitantly, "Not all the time."

That day was a prognosticator of years to come. Ten neighbors who have lived in the neighborhood from five to 38 years say the traffic situation on Pine Avenue has gone from bad to worse.

"It's gotten to the point where I'm thinking of selling," said Cindy Sanders, a six-year resident.

It has gotten especially bad in the last three years, the residents claim. Many commuters use Pine Avenue as a major thoroughfare. Westbound commuters use Pine Avenue to reach eBay offices on Hamilton Avenue or Highway 17, homeowners claim. Eastbound commuters often use Pine Avenue as a shortcut to Almaden Expressway. In addition, many students and parents use Pine Avenue to get to Willow Glen Middle and High schools.

"It's nonstop, four hours in the morning and four hours at night," neighbor Craig Espinosa said.

"And in between they're speeding," resident Dot Terhart added.

Espinosa has lived at 1242 Pine Ave. for seven years. Espinosa says one commuter was speeding so fast down Pine Avenue last October that he knocked Espinosa's parked car onto the sidewalk. "It was totaled," he said.

Others report clipped side mirrors, difficulty getting in and out of their driveways and numerous accidents in front of their homes. Not only are commuters speeding, but also drivers roll right through the Pine Avenue stop signs, the residents said.

For five-year resident Claire Darling, staying at home with her 18-month old twins has been a real eye opener. Darling worries for their safety when they're playing in the yard and the ill effects that the traffic may have on her historic home.

Darling lives at 1255 Pine Ave., which sits on the corner of Pine and Cottle avenues. Its large stained-glass window is one of its distinguishing characteristics. When Darling recently had the window replaced, she was told the existing window was on the verge of collapse due to the vibration from the traffic.

Last August, Darling decided to get proactive about the traffic problem and joined her neighbor Terhart's fight to decrease the traffic on Pine Avenue. Darling began by contacting San Jose District 6 Councilmen Ken Yeager and the San Jose Department of Transportation.

Her persistence paid off and by October, the transportation department was outside Darling's home on Pine Avenue to conduct a week-long speed survey. The survey showed that 11,000 cars a day were traveling on Pine Avenue.

As a result of that information, the transportation department trimmed several trees and repainted stop signs along Pine Avenue in December. The transportation department met with neighbors on Dec. 17 after the work was complete, but the residents said this was not enough to solve the problem.

City officials, including Yeager, have been willing to meet with neighbors again in March or April, but a date has not been set because Darling wants to schedule the meeting at night when more residents are home.

The neighbors' push to reduce traffic volume on Pine Avenue will require broader community outreach on nearby streets, transportation deputy director Amit Kothari said.

"When we have an issue that will involve neighborhood streets we have to look at a solution that will work for everyone," he said.

Pine Avenue is meant to be a minor arterial road that connects commuters to larger roads such as Lincoln Avenue, he said. Neighboring arterial streets such as Meridian Avenue, with 13,000 cars passing through daily, and Curtner Avenue, which gets 22,000 a day, are more heavily traveled.

"When we look at the larger picture, Pine Avenue's 11,000 cars are not that excessive," Kothari said.

The transportation department collected speed and volume data on Pine Avenue during the week of April 4. If speed is in excess of the 30 mph speed limit, Kothari said, the department will look into measures to slow traffic, such as increased police patrol, a radar sign displaying commuter speed, or NASCOP, which will ticket speeders.

Yeager agrees that volume and speeding are two separate issues, with varying community impact. "The city will do everything it can to slow down the traffic and have traffic calming devices where appropriate," Yeager said. "The traffic volume issue will have to be dealt with separately."

For Darling the solutions are too slow.

"I'm beside myself," Darling says. "The whole neighborhood should share the traffic."

In fact, many Pine Avenue residents say they too are cutting through side streets to avoid the congested road. They want to see the traffic filtered onto Curtner and Minnesota avenues. They would also like to see Pine Avenue's speed limit drop from 30 mph to 25, like neighboring streets.

Even with a solution still unclear, 38-year resident Becky Worsham has hope. As one of three founding members of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association, Worsham worked to keep Cherry Avenue from becoming a thoroughfare nearly 30 years ago. Encouraging her neighbors to continue their fight with the city, Worsham says neighbors can also act as traffic monitors by driving the speed limit and stopping at all signs.

Terry Kelly, a 16-year resident of Willow Glen, would like to see a sign mounted at the point where Hamilton Avenue turns into Pine Avenue. The sign, he said, would read, "Welcome to Willow Glen. Stop and enjoy our neighborhood, slowly."