posted by Joe Polk at 1:36 AM /
The following is an editorial that recently appeared in The Almanac:
I just returned from a visit to Seattle, Washington and a little town called Kirkland. This quaint town is much like Mt. Lebanon full of walkers, joggers, bikers and dog walkers. At each intersection affixed to a pole is a bucket of bright yellow flags. Pedestrians take a flag and wave it clearly to on coming traffic and cross only when the vehicle has come to a complete stop. Locals and visitors not only have adopted the system but find it to be fun. If a system like this can be adopted and named after this wonderful young mother maybe we can prevent future happenings.
David McHugh
Canonsburg
Read more: www.thealmanac.net/ALM/Story/07-21-2010-letter-Cbg--McHugh
I just returned from a visit to Seattle, Washington and a little town called Kirkland. This quaint town is much like Mt. Lebanon full of walkers, joggers, bikers and dog walkers. At each intersection affixed to a pole is a bucket of bright yellow flags. Pedestrians take a flag and wave it clearly to on coming traffic and cross only when the vehicle has come to a complete stop. Locals and visitors not only have adopted the system but find it to be fun. If a system like this can be adopted and named after this wonderful young mother maybe we can prevent future happenings.
David McHugh
Canonsburg
Read more: www.thealmanac.net/ALM/Story/07-21-2010-letter-Cbg--McHugh
Labels: crosswalks, pedestrian safety
10 Comments:
Interesting idea, but I think the flags would be stolen within a month.
I know Kirkland from years back, and it was a wonderful little town across the pond from Seattle.....wonder if they ever solved their little problem with geese and what they leave behind ?
Unfortunately, I think Matthew is right. Another idea would be for John Ferguson, our local tax collector, to include white flags with mailings of tax receipts so that we could use them at/in crosswalks....and eventually wave them from our rooftops when we surrender to the building and fast approaching tax and fee (i.e. disguised tax)increases from all levels and quarters of government.
Bill Lewis
The problem isn't necessarily the flags or signage; the problem is getting consistent law enforcement.
Anyone who has spent time or worked in Vermont knows that pedestrians have the right-of-way in all crosswalks. VT law enforcement cites all violations. The pedestrians know that they have the right-of-way, and the drivers know to stop.
That's not the case in Mt Lebanon even where the pedestrian crosswalks are clearly marked to yield to pedestrians. Since the drivers rarely yield and the police don't cite violators the pedestrians become confused and stand in the crosswalks wondering what to do. If you follow the law and stop your car you risk being rear-ended; and if you proceed then you risk a citation.
We need consistent enforcement. One way to do this would be (as in other states) to have a patrolman step into a crosswalk during rush-hour and have another officer with a view chase the driver and issue a citation. We should enforce the law or get rid of it - it's not safe to have it both ways!
John, You mention police enforcement at rush hour! Mt. Lebanon traffic is horrendous all of the time, on every major street: Washington, Cochran, Castle Shannon Blvd., Bower Hill, Cedar, Florida and Lebanon Avenues, (which shouldn't be major arteries but are due to massive cut-throughs, and on and on. We don't have enough police to control every street, every minute. Our traffic is a nightmare, and maybe even more important than protecting adults at "rush-hour" is the safety of our children on their way to and from school. Our town's "walking community" motto is nothing but a joke! Fear for our son's life prevents us from ever letting him walk to school and he‘s going into the fifth grade! MT. LEBANON NEEDS A PROACTIVE, EFFECTIVE TRAFFIC BOARD/COUNCIL WHO ADDRESSES THIS SERIOUS PROBLEM BEFORE ANOTHER PERSON IS KILLED. I have been in front of the TB on two occasions only to be told "You only care about your son!" Well to those listening, I PRAY THIS DOESN’T HAPPEN BUT ANYONE’S CHILD COULD BE NEXT. Following is a few random headlines (from within just one year) that I got when I goggled Mt. Lebanon accidents. "Mt. Lebanon jogger, struck by SUV, dies"; "Mt. Lebanon crossing guard struck by car"; "Vehicle Strikes 12-Year-Old Boy In Mt. Lebanon"; "Worker Hit By Truck In Mt. Lebanon, Dies". I’m not certain of what the solution is, but surely PennDot, which regulates Washington Road, and the municipality can do something to improve everyone‘s safety. (My sincere condolences to the family and friends of Lisa Styles.)
Claire Little
Many Lebo residents are not aware of the PennDot Highways, or State Roads, in Lebo. Bear with me while I name them as a prelude to making my main point : Castle Shannon Blvd., Cochran Rd., Conner Rd., Kelso Rd., Mt. Lebanon Blvd., McFarland Rd., Robb Hollow Rd. (Kelso Rd. to USC line), Scott Rd., Segar Rd., Washington Rd.
Quite a number isn't it, and most are very dangerous. A little more background to my point. Traffic enforcement by communities is impeded by a PA law that prohibits our use of RADAR devices for control & enforcement. Only by State Police on State and Interstate highways, I understand.
Our new Police Chief, who comes to us after retiring from the PA State Police as their #2 in command, is very frustrated by this, I hear, as he is fully aware of our traffic problems. Our State Representative Matt Smith has co-sponsored legislation in 2 separate Bills to permit the use of RADAR in communities in which there are State roads - apparently stuck in some Committee.
Here's my point -- why not get a group of citizens who are truly concerned about our local issue, talk to our Manager, Commissioners, the Chief, the Traffic Board and Traffic Engineer, Matt Smith and our State Senator, John Pippy and see if it would make sense to launch a campaign and coalition with like-minded area communities to lobby Harrisburg for a law to allow RADAR use by communities along any/all State roads within their bounds ? It might gain the attention of other portions of the Commonwealth and achieve some momentum.
Success would not guarantee solution of the problem...but a combination of hefty fine, points and license suspension prospects might get the attention of and result in behavior modification of a large number of motorists.
Bill Lewis
Hi Claire,
You're singing to the choir. 8)
Bill,
Did you know that earlier this year in Mt. Lebanon the state police [using radar] issued 26 citations in 2 hours?
John....yes I do recall. The Chief, who still has some "pull" with the State Police, was able to get this trial or test done. But I would think it needs a lot of popular, coordinated, followup support...grassroots and whatever. What has happened since and as a result of that test ?
I think that test was done on just one one of the many State roads I listed in the earlier comment above. Just think of the number of additional infractions that might have been recorded over the same 2 hours over the additional 9 roads...and then add another 2 hours of surveilance, making sure the hours of 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m. were considered in the mix. We now have a number of electronic speed monitoring devices operating along a number of varying roads in Lebo...are they recording and tabulating data that can and will be compiled, reported and utilized in some beneficial manner ?
The idea is not to make Lebo a notorious "speed trap", but to respond to increasing traffic compounded by increasing numbers of irresponsible motorists in the name of the health, safety and welfare of our residents...which is the longstanding solemn pledge of public officials upon taking office in PA.
Bill Lewis
Bill,
That's an easy question to answer - nothing. There was absolutely no follow-through.
I'm surprised that proponents of radar for local police didn't point to the success of the pilot.
I've seen upscale communities in other parts of the country deal with the same problems by placing a city park at the end of a public street. The strategy was to divert traffic towards the main arteries and off of the residential streets. Since traffic was diverted from the residential streets the traffic volumes declined and the property values increased. When the main arteries became more congested the drivers found another route. That's really our best hope - the region doesn't have the money for an alternative highway.
John K., couple things to note. In the past 3-5 years Lebo has positioned officers along Washington Rd with the sole purpose of issuing citations to both motorists AND pedestrians who fail to adhere to the laws regarding crosswalks (people tend to forget that the laws reference what pedestrians should and should not do as well). The firestorm of criticism from those receiving tickets was typical Mt. Lebanon, so much so that I think in many instances those who elected to fight their tickets were released with a mere warning.
Even further back then that, Mt. Lebanon commenced a Pedestrian Safety Initiative in 2004, the same year that the police department's Operation Safe Walk studied 42 of the municipality's intersections. The study found, in 15 hours of observation over three weeks, that 57 pedestrians crossed either at the wrong place or at inappropriate times.
Unless we want to increase taxes still further, hire more police or forego other aspects of necessary law enforcement in Lebo, I think we all need to come to grips with two facts . . . traffic is here to stay and the most change will come from our residents themselves. We simply can't give out enough tickets (on a regular basis) to create the necessary deterrent.
However, we can change our own habits. Stop speeding, stop cutting through, yield to pedestrians etc. The change that can come from everyone doing things right will do more to solve the overall problem then complaining about inconsistent enforcement.
And spare me the excuse that the Lebo residents are the ones who do it right, and its the commuters from USC, Peters etc who cause the problems. There will always be more of us on our streets than them, so if we change our habits they will eventually change theirs.
As a former member of the traffic board, I am well aware of the benefits that this panel can provide, as well as the limitations of its powers. I will spare everyone my normal rant on this issue and instead point out that contrary to popular belief, when the traffic board is asked to review a street or an intersection and make recommendations for change, it often receives as much resistance to those changes as it does support. Not everyone wants speed humps, one way streets and no left turn signs everywhere. That does not mean those folks are anti-kid or anti-safety. Even the strongest advocates for traffic safety will acknowledge that not every problem has a specific solution. I will say though that our community spends more time and resources (money) than perhaps any other community in our region listening to residents, evaluating traffic concerns and trying to get it right.
Hi Dave,
You're right. Period.
I'll admit that the police can only enforce on the margin. Civility has to be everyone's responsibility.
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