Cities across the nation are concerned about pedestrian safety. Small wonder; nearly 5,000 U.S. pedestrians die in traffic accidents every year and more than ten times that number are injured.
In Salt Lake City ? ranked in 2000 as one of the nation?s most dangerous metropolitan areas for pedestrians ? orange visibility flags, flashing warning lights, countdown timers and boldly painted ?LOOK? signs have been implemented in an effort to make walking safer. More recently visibility flags have appeared at a number of intersections around campus.
We applaud community efforts to improve pedestrian safety. However, these efforts have yet to yield a statistically significant decrease in the number of pedestrian-related accidents.
Considering that some 70 percent of all pedestrian fatalities are male, it is hard to blame accidents on deficient community safety standards, which would create an environment equally dangerous to both genders.
It seems that no amount of reflective paint and gee-whiz gadgetry can replace common sense and a modicum of caution.
If we as a community wish to be ?pedestrian friendly,? we?re going to have to remember what our mothers taught us about walking and driving.
For starters, look both ways before you cross the street; red means stop; if you can?t see them, they can?t see you. You don?t have to hold hands while crossing the street ? though it may improve your odds of getting a date to Preference.
Once we have these down, we can move community education on to more advanced topics like the orange crossing flags. According to Feet First, a pedestrian advocacy group, the orange flags should be used ?to stop traffic before stepping off the curb.? The flags do increase visibility, but they are not talismans of invincibility, nor do they exempt a pedestrian from looking both ways before crossing.
Moreover, nighttime motorists may not see the flag until it is directly in front of their headlights, when stopping safely may already be impossible. Of course, any proper use of these flags presupposes that motorists understand their responsibility to stop.
There is probably no governing principle of pedestrian safety, but if someone comes up with a catchy way to say, ?Being in a hurry can kill,? it would at least make an excellent slogan.
Whether you are a motorist or pedestrian, whether your ?pet sin? is jaywalking, speeding, rolling stops, unloading passengers from the turning lane or just being plain oblivious to those around you, take a moment to slow down
It could save your life ? or someone else’s.
