Watch out for that traffic light on Willamette
(The Beacon)
By
I would like to draw attention to a potential tragic accident.
The crosswalk at the entrance at the campus that crosses Willamette is a source of much danger. Trees often shadow the area and thus the crosswalk is not brightly lit.
The other day a young lady, holding her cell phone to her ear, and walking with her head down, stepped immediately into the cross walk. She never lifted her head until there was a squeal of brakes. The car immediately to her left stopped just inches from wiping her out. The car behind the first car slammed into the lead car.
The young woman started screaming at the driver as if this was his fault. It is true it is a crosswalk. There is a button to push to make a light pulsate yellow to warn drivers, but she was not taking responsibility for her own actions. She had her head down, was on the phone and stepped into traffic with enough entitlement to get herself killed. Students need to be careful. If you get hit, and killed or maimed the law about crosswalks means little. The walker has some responsibility to forewarn drivers by pushing that button and or to at least look to see where the cars are before stepping into the crosswalk. If this had been a two-ton truck she would be dead, as they cannot stop on a dime.
My suggestion is to the University is to install a moveable gate or turnstile that will stop a pedestrian before they can step into the street.
With the rainy season here and the darkness of the area, an accident, a tragic one, is waiting to happen.
- Sally Skelding
Concerned neighbor
