Apparently, Purdue University is trying out crossing guards.

[conuly]

The article is accompanied by four related articles on pedestrians being struck by cars there.

Now, I picked this up at FRK, where the attitude was "OMG, we're even babying grown-ups in college now, it's bad parenting!" and that might be the case. However, if I were to make a view from JUST this article (and I'm about to do that, though it's a very short and uninformative article and I'm aware I don't have all the facts) my view would be different.

Let's look at two quotes:

"When I was in undergrad and we didn't have the yield sign, it was pretty obvious you don't take the right of way from cars."

and

"I think they are needed because people walk through and they won't pay attention," said student Megan Collins.

Now, here's an interesting thing. I took the time to actually look up Indiana's laws regarding pedestrians, and as near as I can tell, pedestrians have the right of way at all crosswalks unless they, you know, take a running jump at a moving vehicle or something.

If the situation is such that many people (as indicated by the comments) think that travel belongs to drivers, and that the responsibility for paying attention is ONLY on pedestrians, the problem is bigger than "Some people, when walking, are texting or listening to music". (Which is not to say that when walking along you should be totally unaware, that's absurd, just that there's something screwy about a system that doesn't put people at the center.)

Comments

[mc776]

The way I was brought up, I've pretty much been trained to understand intellectually* that people on foot have right of way, but act as though the drivers did. It seems to make sense to me, since have much less freedom to turn or suddenly stop and so are more predictable and the pedestrian has the easier time between the two of them to make the ultimate decision, but if anything happens the pedestrian has much more to lose so the driver should bear more responsibility.

*based entirely on hearsay - I must admit I've never read a statute in my life that spelled out who had right of way.

[ancarett]

It's Purdue University (my alma mater). They're also having the police run an enforcement blitz, trying to get the many speeders and scofflaws who zip through intersections and strike or threaten the pedestrians.

There is a huge car culture in the area. Not as big as California, but public transit's anemic in the city so many, many students, staff and faculty drive down to the campus, exacerbating the situation.

[conuly]

I'm glad to hear from somebody who knows, and now I get to fix my title too!

[blackhanddpants.livejournal.com]

As an alum, I was going to ask: Why are they not setting cops to ticket the drivers who fail to yield the right of way at crosswalks? That should be a major offense on what's supposed to be a pedestrian campus!

That said, there are some six-lane (maybe even seven- or eight-lane) streets around the perimeter of campus that are pretty busy, and I always felt like I was taking my life in my hands to cross them. I also felt that crossing in the middle of the block was safer than crossing at the corners, because you only had cars coming at you from TWO directions that way.

Also, I am SO embarrassed. Crossing guards? We'll be the laughingstock of the Big Ten!

[ancarett]

They ARE stepping up enforcement, too. This was linked on the U's FB page:

"Purdue University police will have extra officers patrolling the streets from Sept. 20-26 in order to curb aggressive driving and speeding.

The extra police presence is an extension of the education and enforcement campaign that has been under way for pedestrian safety on and around campus. Since Aug. 23, Purdue and West Lafayette police issued 525 warnings and 22 tickets as part of that campaign."

https://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/health_safety/2010/100917PoliceTraffic.html

[blackhanddpants.livejournal.com]

Good!

[conuly]

It sounds like they are, and the crossing guards are just a small part of this.

And you're right about middle-of-the-road crossing.

[codeman38.livejournal.com]

Heck, even when there is a yield sign, it's often poorly enforced.

There is this one crosswalk near campus that I use frequently. There's no stop light or anything there, but there is a very clearly marked yield sign warning drivers to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk.

People drive through it all the time when I've got one foot in the crosswalk, with a very clear intention of crossing.

[codeman38.livejournal.com]

And no, I'm not at Purdue, for whatever that's worth, but I've experienced this phenomenon-- people not stopping at a yield sign-- at both Mercer University (Macon, GA) and the University of Georgia (Athens, GA).

And yes, Georgia law, much like Indiana, states that drivers must stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk.

[conuly]

Indeed, I'm wondering if the crossing guards aren't to protect pedestrians so much as enforce traffic laws.

[codeman38.livejournal.com]

Also, I notice a certain ableist streak at work in the comments too.

I have a really hard time judging the speed and distance of cars due to my visual processing quirks. (Often, it's easier for me to hear how far away traffic is than see it.) I actually got hit by a car once at Mercer because I thought the driver was stopping to let me cross...and she wasn't.

[conuly]

You read the comments? How bad are they?

[codeman38.livejournal.com]

Let's just put it this way: A lot of the comments basically said things to the effect that pedestrians totally deserve it if they get hit by a car. And one person with an Obviously Fake Name (this is a Facebook-based commenting system!) basically insinuating that the people who couldn't cross the street were intellectually impaired (complete with a joke about how the policemen were in the 'special services' division).

I only saw one comment even suggesting that drivers might possibly be at fault.

[lakidaa.livejournal.com]

It's pretty much 'Pedestrians always have the right of way' in my town, I think?

Presumably because in MAN VS CAR, the car will always win so the car is the responsible party. I think it's the same with bicycles. people > bikes > cars?

I think the whole 'cars have right of way' thing is just so bizarre because that was one of the things beat into my head when I was learning to drive; 'ALWAYS yield to a pedestrian'.

[ksol1460.livejournal.com]

So did we, back in Drivers Ed class in '74. It was stamped into our foreheads like MARK VII.

[lakidaa.livejournal.com]

DO NOT MESS WITH PEDESTRIANS

THEY WILL CRUSH YOU

IN COURT

WITH ALL YOUR DOLLARS :(

[queenlyzard.livejournal.com]

there's something screwy about a system that doesn't put people at the center

This line sadly applies to so many many things in our society.

[marveen.livejournal.com]

The people walking, or the people driving?

This is one of those cases where one has to strike a balance....because there are total purblind idiots stumbling around on foot as well as behind the wheel, and you get problems especially when one tries to cross in front of the other.

The dope who darts out at a jog from behind an SUV in a thirty-five zone in order to jaywalk (I hit the brakes in time, but jeez) should not be classed with the little girl WALKING her bike across the crosswalk, in a school zone, while crossing guards flourish their signs, who is STILL hit by an inattentive driver. (Both of those examples are pure fact, btw.)