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Volume 115, Number 139 - Tuesday, March 9, 1999
Bring back exclusive use crosswalks now!
by John Friedlander
Sometimes I hate being right.
But at least I'm not the only one who hates downtown Middletown's new concurrent crosswalk system that forces pedestrians to share crosswalk space with moving hunks of steel hundreds of times their weight.
Middletown resident Marty Knight got knocked down by a car at a downtown intersection not long after the crosswalk system was changed. The woman who hit Marty said she was blinded by the sun, could only see her green light, and couldn't see Marty in the crosswalk. Marty has worked at Middlesex Hospital for nearly twenty five years and is totally blind. Before the change in the crosswalk system, Marty could tell it was safe to cross the street by the sound of car engines idling and the absence of rushing traffic. Now there is no time when traffic is not a threat to Marty.
Luckily for all of us, Marty was not seriously injured.
I've written before that cities are defined by the many little things that either improve or degrade our sense of the quality of a place. Blighted buildings, graffiti, and uncollected garbage destroy the quality of Middletown. Attractively maintained business districts and municipal policies that support their safe and pleasurable use by a diverse public are strong positives for any community.
Middletown is taking excellent actions to improve the quality of the downtown experience. The negotiations that put a movie theater into the long-vacant space in Metro Square are to be applauded. Having to decide between two different restaurants for the new police station is a problem every city should be lucky enough to have. The new streetlights, crosswalk fixtures and the removal of the old fixtures helps improve the look of downtown, and the benches, planters and facade repairs the Main Street Middletown program is working on should also be improvements. If you read this column often you've probably gotten tired of my relentless cheerleading for Main Street.
But the concurrent use crosswalk system recently installed downtown is a big red X of a problem. Middletown residents should not have to walk this gauntlet. The City's failure to correct this error in judgment is a sign that there is a disconnect between the idea of what a nice downtown ought to look like and the reality of the way a nice downtown needs to function.
Here's a quick tip for the Chief of Police J. Edward Brymer, who is responsible for the safety of Middletown's citizens -- whether they drive or walk, Director of Public Works Salvatore Fazzino, who is responsible for making sure the City's hardware works right, and Mayor Domenique Thornton, who takes the heat when anything goes wrong -- whether it's her fault or not. Making life easier for cars must not make life more dangerous for people on foot. Smoother vehicular traffic flow must not come at the expense of pedestrian safety.
People on foot patronize our downtown businesses and choose whether to shop in Middletown or elsewhere. Cars just get some of these people to (or through) the neighborhood. If people are frightened away from the downtown shopping district by stories of pedestrians injured by motorists, business will suffer.
If, on the other hand, Middletown adds to its reputation of having a wide and attractive Main Street by reestablishing pedestrian friendliness, business fortunes will be enhanced. Foot traffic will increase and merchants will be happier with their downtown locations.
This isn't rocket science. Relatively defenseless people who need to cross the roads they share with motor vehicles should have every protection possible, and should not lose the protection they've been accustomed to in Middletown for as long as we can remember. A business neighborhood like the Main Street area needs to not only look pedestrian-friendly, it needs to be pedestrian-friendly.
It is common knowledge that drivers seem to shut their brains off when they get behind the wheel of their cars. How many of us haven't heard or even laughed at "jokes" like "two points for hitting the old lady crossing the street?" How many of us haven't "woken up" while driving to realize that we really don't remember much of the last thirty seconds of travel? How many of us haven't come close to causing an accident, realizing we would have been at fault, and thanked God (or the deity of your choice) for getting lucky? How many of us are perfect drivers?
Unfortunately, most of us think we're better drivers than we actually are. Most of us think that traffic accidents are caused by "the other guy." Here's a wake up call: to the person next to us, we are "the other guy."
As a motorist, you might think that pedestrian rights are not your problem, that policies that ensure the safety of walkers threaten drivers' rights. But policies that lower the likelihood of your injuring or killing someone with your vehicle are definitely in your best interests.
Think about how your life would change if you accidentally hit a child crossing a street. Forget for a moment about the fear and pain felt by a child unexpectedly flying through the air toward a rock-solid concrete curb. Forget the heart-stopping grief of a parent watching a gravely injured child pass from life. Forget about the grim looks on the faces of the emergency medical technicians as they try to save a youngster's life.
Think instead about the higher cost of your auto insurance. Think about the cost of the repair to your damaged vehicle. Think about how you will feel every time you drive past the spot where the accident occurred. Think about how the urgency of your trip faded to meaninglessness as you watched the ambulance pull away from the accident scene. Think of the lecture you will deliver to your adolescent as he or she takes your keys for that first drive in the family car.
Or how about this one: put a raw egg on your kitchen table, then hit the table randomly with a hammer. Watch what happens when the hammer hits the egg. Remember that little experiment next time you see a pedestrian dodging traffic on the way across Main Street.
Right now I'm remembering the friendly chat I had back in early December with Public Works Director Fazzino and Bob Dobmeier, an Assistant Chief Engineer in charge of installing the new traffic lights. They impressed me with their detailed knowledge of the issues about traffic light timing, and they told me that the features of the new system had been discussed at length in advance during public hearings, and that lots of planning had gone into the change. I really liked both of these guys, and I imagine they're not too happy that I'm complaining so loudly about the results of their hard work. But I know they're both professionals and can take responsible criticism in stride.
I'm also looking across my room at a new coat I just bought. I shopped hard for this coat. I compared it to three other similar coats. The one I got has all the features I wanted, at a great price. But I've worn it for a few days, and I'm going to take it back and exchange it for a different one. It just doesn't feel right -- it just doesn't work for me. The features, the fit and the price were all just what I wanted. But I don't feel right wearing it.
Downtown's new crosswalks look good on the street. They may have looked good on paper before we got them. But concurrent use crosswalk programming isn't right for any of Middletown's Main Street neighborhood intersections. Mayor Thornton, Chief Brymer, Director Fazzino, please correct this situation -- before it becomes a major headache -- or heartache.
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