Slowing Down for Rt. 1

Route 1 is a place for this university’s students to eat, work and play. However, the highway has recently transformed from this university’s backyard into a hazardous stretch of road that’s increasingly led to injury — and in two cases, death — for pedestrians.

Over the past 11 months, there have been five incidents in which pedestrians were struck by vehicles in or near the Route 1 and Knox Road intersection. Two of these incidents were fatal, taking the lives of 22-year old university student Cory Hubbard and George Washington University senior Carlos Pacanins.

Because of these recent incidents, College Park community members and university officials have spoken up, raising awareness of pedestrian safety on Route 1. A Change.org petition has collected nearly 2,700 signatures in hopes of building a sidewalk barrier outside Cornerstone Grill and Loft and R.J. Bentley’s to prevent jaywalking. People have asked State Highway Administration to lower the speed limit. Even university President Wallace Loh encouraged the university community to exercise caution while navigating Route 1.

Thanks to the community’s outcry, city officials have begun to re-evaluate current Route 1 safety measures, including the city’s speed cameras. The city’s speed cameras operate Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. All five collisions involving pedestrians in the past 11 months occurred outside of the speed cameras’ hours of operation.

The string of incidents raises the question of whether the cameras should operate 24/7 as opposed to the current schedule. The purpose of speed cameras is to encourage drivers to slow down, especially in areas with high pedestrian traffic, such as the intersection of Route 1 and Knox Road. However, the cameras’ current hours of operation fail to help ensure responsible driving and protect pedestrians when they have proven most likely to be struck.

This stretch of Route 1 is busiest on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights — all times when the speed cameras are not operating, according to University Police Chief David Mitchell. There’s a clear correlation between this density of traffic and accidents involving pedestrians.

There is a not a strong likelihood of a vehicle striking a pedestrian during the standard workweek from midmorning to the evening. There is simply not as much foot traffic from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Robert Ryan, the city’s public services director, said in a previous interview with The Diamondback that from his association with speed cameras, they are effective in reducing the speed of vehicles on the road. However, it seems the cameras aren’t operational when it really matters. Of course, incidents can happen anytime and anywhere, but five collisions after 8 p.m. can’t be construed as coincidence — they represent an obvious trend.

How many pedestrians have to be struck before the speed cameras can be kept on 24/7?

The editorial board realizes responsibility for pedestrian safety doesn’t rest solely with drivers; those on foot cannot expect to flout traffic laws and remain safe from injury. Pedestrians should cross the street with caution while staying inside the crosswalk and walking only when the flashing signs indicate it is safe to do so.

If the city decided to operate the speed cameras all the time, then drivers would be encouraged to slow down whenever they are traveling on Route 1, not just during 14-hour stretches of primarily daylight. Keeping the speed cameras on all the time may just be one small step in increasing Route 1 safety, but that one small step might save a life.