Tri-State’s recently released Most Dangerous Roads for Walking report identifies US-1 and US-5 as the deadliest roads in Connecticut for pedestrians. One would hope that government would respond with promises of action. But a ConnDOT spokesperson instead told the Stamford Advocate that most pedestrian fatalities on Boston Post Road/US-1 were caused by pedestrian error, and said it was up to walkers and drivers to “obey very basic rules of the road.”
Of course individuals bear responsibility for their actions, but governments cannot avoid blame when roads are dangerous by design, without sidewalks and crosswalks. As WTNH reporter Chris Velardi put it, “When you go out for a walk, what you want to find is a sidewalk. But on two of the state’s busiest roads, Route 1 and Route 5, it’s sometimes hard to find a sidewalk — even near a bus stop.” The point was underscored by West Haven bus rider Tara Williams, who must walk on the side of Route 1 to get to her bus stop, often with her young daughter. “Yeah, it is [scary],” Williams said. “That’s why I keep her on the inside and we end up climbing over snow mountains and things in order to stay out of the road.”
The TSTC report finds that over 60% of pedestrian fatalities in the tri-state area took place on “arterial” roads characterized by fast-moving traffic and few pedestrian amenities. Earlier analysis of federal data by the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership has shown that most pedestrians are killed where no crosswalks can be conveniently accessed. ConnDOT Commissioner Joe Marie should make it clear that his department has a basic responsibility to make travel safe for all road users — especially given the citizen mandate for safer streets embodied by the state’s new complete streets law.
Video: Via WTNH’s YouTube account.
Great work, Tri-State. Let’s hope they get a sidewalk soon to make it safer for Tara Williams and the many like her!
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IMO, one culprit here is the culture of speeding in the Tri-State Area. There is a general lack of respect for speed limits, coupled with lax enforcement region-wide. When I travel elsewhere and then come back here, I’m always struck by the lawlessness of our roads as compared to elsewhere. The result of this is that nearly every 35mph is actually a 45-50mph road, both reducing motorist reaction times and increasing the damage that a struck pedestrian will sustain.
What an insulting, and predictable, response from ConnDOT. They’re incapable of doing anything other than producing high speed facilities for vehicles that are hazardous for humans. It’s not so often pedestrian errors that are killing and injuring us, it’s the DOT and their out of date, backward obsession with massive infrastructure for steel boxes on wheels.
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