Five Pedestrian, Bicyclist Deaths: What Must Be Done?
A bicyclist's death this week marked the fifth fatal collision in the eastern and middle areas of Montgomery County since late January.
View 2013 Pedestrian Accidents in Montgomery County in a larger map
A 23-year-old man died after a car struck his bicycle in downtown Silver Spring Sunday, the latest casualty in a series of collisions that have unsettled Montgomery County residents.
Since Jan. 22, four pedestrians — and now one cyclist — have died in Silver Spring and Aspen Hill. Three were killed while crossing the road, another while she stood on the sidewalk.
Two additional pedestrians survived strikes by cars, but sustained injuries. One did not appear to have major injuries, but another went to the hospital in serious condition.
Ken Silverman, an analyst for Montgomery County Council President Nancy Navarro, created a map showing the locations of five of these collisions.
Silverman says that Montgomery County police should "aggressively ticket drivers who speed or fail to stop for pedestrians at crosswalks, and should focus these efforts in the areas of the county where there have been an unusual number of pedestrian accidents."
Wheaton blogger Avocado agrees: "We need some speed limit enforcement on Georgia at least from Silver Spring downtown north through Aspen Hill. Drivers should also be pulled over and cited by police for not yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks."
One Patch commenter wrote the following: "Pedestrians almost always choose the shortest routes to their destination. This is well-known. It's time to stop trying to re-engineer human behavior and start re-engineering our streets so that pedestrians can use them safely."
After three pedestrians were fatally hit by cars in Montgomery County in just three weeks in January and February, Patch asked readers for their thoughts on safety.
Anne B responded with this comment: "Drivers need to slow down and be aware of pedestrians, but pedestrians should take the extra minute or two to walk to a designated crosswalk where there is a traffic light. And the county needs to do more to improve crosswalks for pedestrians, especially in areas like Aspen Hill and Wheaton which are often overlooked as the more affluent areas get safety improvements."
What do you think? How can Montgomery County improve bicyclist and pedestrian safety? Tell us in the comments.
Woodside Park Bob
7:13 am on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
The story says: "Silverman says that Montgomery County police should "aggressively ticket drivers who speed or fail to stop for pedestrians at crosswalks, and should focus these efforts in the areas of the county where there have been an unusual number of pedestrian accidents."
That makes sense, but we should also call for police to equally aggressively ticket bicycle riders and pedestrians who ignore stop signs and traffic signals. According to another Patch story, the police say the latest death was the result of the bicycle rider entering an intersection against a red light. He was hit by a car proceeding with a green light. That doesn't make his death any less tragic, but it would have been prevented if he had obeyed the signal.
Mary Bulla Sanchez
4:11 pm on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
EXACTLY! Thank you Woodside Park Bob, I was thinking the same thing!
Andrea Kline
5:23 pm on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
You are absolutely right. I frequently see bicyclists without lights or reflectors riding at night in downtown and south silver spring. And of course, the constant flow of jaywalking, texting pedestrians on every street, day and night. Today near MC, Takoma, a young woman jaywalking slowly while texting -didn't look before she walked into the street between cars but lucky for her I did
Kristina Folsom
5:38 pm on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Everyone needs to take more responsibility for paying closer attention and making intelligent decisions. Working on the corner of GA Ave. and Colesville I see people constantly walking when the crosswalk clearly tells them not to, or crossing randomly in the middle of the street, popping out unexpectedly between cars. I see bicyclists without reflectors or lights, not wearing helmets, and popping on and off the sidewalks. I see cars just cruise right through red lights like they aren't even there, or honk at pedestrians crossing on a walk signal. For all these crazies, I see many many people doing what they should be doing - paying attention, following traffic laws and rules, and making intelligent decisions. Unfortunately I think you're always going to have people who think they are invincible right up until the moment they are proven wrong by losing their life. No amount of ticketing or enforcement is going to change that.