Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Certain crosswalks in front of buildings are designed to cut through distractions for the pedestrian and the motorist. It flashes, beeps and has bumps underfoot. But safety advocates stress pedestrian safety is up to all of us.
Landon Kenny admits he's wrapped up in his phone too often while walking, like many of us. He stays alert in the crosswalk.
"I catch myself doing that when I'm by myself," he said. "It's hard. Right? I get phone calls all the time, text messages all the time. So, I try and set a limit."
Pedestrian fatalities were trending higher in Utah until a drop last year.
"Two years ago, we saw a jump in our fatalities,” said Zero Fatalities spokeswoman Allyse Christensen. "I am concerned still because this is still higher than it was in 2014."
Safety engineers are working on solutions. A couple of years ago, Utah Transit Authority upgraded more than 150 pedestrian crossings near its train and bus stops. The simplicity of design is the key.
At a Salt Lake City FrontRunner crossing, clear signage and simple fencing are designed to keep the pedestrian from moving straight across the street. By making a person change his or her direction, the crossing is designed to grab the person’s attention and away from the phone.
"Part of what we need to do here is to educate people, and have people be aware of their safety and surroundings,” said Utah Department of Transportation traffic and safety engineer Robert Miles.
UDOT is working on structural and educational approaches. UDOT's "Heads Up" campaign is aimed at pedestrians and motorists. "We have to address it head-on. And we have to figure out what can I do?” Christensen said.
She reminded the public to always stay alert around traffic.
"If you're walking into a road, you have a responsibility to be safe. So, put away the phone. Pull out your headphones to make sure you hear what's going on the road.”
There have been eight pedestrian fatalities in Utah so far this year, fewer than last year at this time. Experts remind the public they need to commit to heads up driving and heads up walking for safer streets.
"We culturally accept people to be distracted everywhere that you go. We need to take a step back and say no, we can't be distracted while were walking around these busy roads,” Christensen said.
