A fluorescent yellow "Stop for Pedestrians Within Crosswalk" sign wasn't at the intersection of South Main Street and Sunset Boulevard in Pittsford for more than a few hours before a motorist mowed it down.

"I came up already one time this morning and put the sign back up because somebody had run over it," said Roger Hawthorne, a Pittsford resident who was out on Wednesday walking his dog on the sidewalk along South Main Street. To the best of his knowledge, that instance was at least the third time since Tuesday the sign had been struck.

"I walk out here a lot, my daughter lives nearby and we go back and forth for the grandchildren and people just don't like to stop for that crosswalk," he said.

On July 19, 77-year-old Xuming Tian was walking across that very crosswalk, just south of the village limits, when he was hit by an oncoming vehicle around 9 p.m. He was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital, where he died of his injuries early July 20.

People living in the densely residential area near Sunset Boulevard and South Main Street say that crossing has been a danger for years. It's poorly marked — there are no warning signs that a crosswalk is ahead from either the northbound or southbound approaches. And the painted crosswalk lines themselves are largely worn away.

"For one thing, people just drive too fast there," said Ruth Schultz of South Main Street. One problem: people who use Sunset Boulevard as a bypass for the signal light at West Jefferson Road and South Main Street making left-hand turns back to South Main Street and hitting the gas. "I see them when I'm turning out of my driveway. People turn fast right out of there."

Pedestrian struck, killed in Pittsford crosswalk

Although Tian's death has drawn more recent attention to that particular crosswalk, town of Pittsford officials were dissuaded earlier this week from making safety upgrades there.

Town Supervisor Bill Smith said the state Department of Transportation is already in the midst of a comprehensive safety study that includes that intersection, and the concern was that adding warning signs now would skew results.

Still, DOT did allow installation of the yellow "Stop for Pedestrians Within Crosswalk" sign.

"DOT has been doing a study of the area intersections, including that one, and what they told us is that they didn't want to see the signs up on the side of the road until they completed their study," said Smith.

"Safety is our priority," said Lori Maher, DOT spokeswoman. "We are awaiting the outcome of the police investigation of last week’s crash and we’re conducting a traffic safety evaluation of the roadway in conjunction with local officials. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and community.”

Pati Robben, who lives at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and South Main Street, said the crosswalk has needed attention for years.

"Increasingly, there's been more and more traffic, I think because Pittsford has grown in the last 10 years. People go very fast and I don't think people know a crosswalk is there," she said. "There are no signs that mark the crosswalk or that warn drivers that there's a crosswalk coming up, and the lines are faded, so it's a problem."

The issue of pedestrian safety in Pittsford town and village is one that has been ongoing.

The stretch of Monroe Avenue that cuts through Pittsford village carries nearly 19,000 cars per day, according to state data, while North and South Main streets carry as many as 13,000 cars per day. By way of comparison, the stretch of Jefferson Road in Henrietta near Southtown Plaza carries nearly as much daily traffic as does Monroe Avenue leading into the village.

Indeed, last year the village installed flags at a crosswalk spanning Monroe Avenue between Main and South streets in the village and at another crosswalk at Monroe and Sutherland street in an effort to bolster safety.

The idea is that pedestrians in the crosswalks can carry and wave the fluorescent orange banners in order to make motorists aware of their presence.

More:Battling traffic, Pittsford pedestrians now wield flags

And as for the town, and the Sunset Boulevard/South Main Street crossing in particular, about 9,200 cars drive over that crosswalk daily.

On Wednesday afternoon, about 15 cars passed through the area every minute or so. At one point, three cars passed by before someone stopped to let this reporter cross the road.

Smith said there is a greater problem in Pittsford than just that one crosswalk, however.

"In my opinion all of our pedestrian crosswalks are presumptive unsafe," he said. "Until you see the car actually stop, don't go into the crosswalk because people just don't pay attention."

He said it's really a matter of a car-centric culture that doesn't make adequate room on the roadways for pedestrians, bicyclists or any other activity that might need to share the road with motor vehicles.

"And there is always going to be traffic congestion here," he said. "Pittsford is in the middle of other places that people are going to and the village itself is a destination point."

In New York, about 300 pedestrians are killed each year in crashes involving motor vehicles. The state departments of Transportation and Health teamed up with the Governor's Traffic Safety Committee last year for a $110 million "See! Be Seen!" initiative to enhance pedestrian safety.

The plan is to reduce pedestrian fatalities in the state by 20 percent from 335 in 2013 to 268 in 2021 and to reduce pedestrian injuries by 10 percent by 2021, using education, enforcement and engineering strategies. Plans include having DOT implement low-cost countermeasures at 2,000 crosswalks without traffic signals and 2,400 signalized intersections. Those measures will include new high-visibility markings and signs, pedestrian refuge islands, light beacons and crossing times at signalized intersections.

In Pittsford, the town and village have been working on an Active Transportation Plan to help mitigate some of the most problematic traffic issues and increase driver and community awareness of pedestrians and bicyclists in a manner that positively impacts the behavior of motorists. Recommended measures include initiatives such as restriping some roadways to widen the shoulders and narrow the travel lanes in order to make drivers slow down. Other proposals include road diets — a transportation planning technique that reduces the effective number of travel lanes in order to allow the reclaimed spaces to be allocated for uses such as turn lanes, pedestrian refuge islands, bike lanes, parking or sidewalks;

Smith said another draft of that plan is expected in coming weeks.

In the meantime, residents would still like to see more immediate changes to the Sunset Boulevard crosswalk.

"I'd really like to see people go more slowly there and be aware of that crosswalk," said Schultz. "Too many places in Pittsford don't seem to be too pedestrian friendly."

MCDERMOT@Gannett.com

Pedestrian and motorist safety tips

The Governor's Traffic Safety Committee offers these tips for pedestrian safety.

Just like motorists, pedestrians are expected to follow certain rules of the road, including: