SLC makes safety improvements at West High School crosswalk
Oct 26, 2023, 6:22 PM | Updated: Nov 3, 2023, 3:47 pm
SALT LAKE CITY —Sharing the roads as a pedestrian can be scary, this year 26 pedestrians have been hit and killed on Utah roads.
Several students have been hit in crosswalks around the state.
Now, the city of Salt Lake is making physical changes to try to prevent tragedy from striking on 400 West.
“We have really big wide open streets and that encourages people to drive fast. So that’s something that we were slowly chipping away at,” Jon Larsen, the Salt Lake City SLC Transportation Division Director said.
Salt Lake City is making improvements to dangerous crosswalks with the most recent project at 400 West where a high schooler was hit and injured in a crosswalk.
“I hate hearing about things like that. We want all of our students to be able to safely get to and from school,” Larsen said.
West High School reached out to the city after a recent incident begging for change. The city city responded, by adding concrete bulb-outs and a pedestrian refuge island at the halfway point in the middle of the street, which serves as a resting area and protection for pedestrians crossing.
Larsen said, “Fourth West is a street that’s in transition. There’s a lot of growth and development there and I think a lot of new residents moving in. And so, I don’t think this will be the last time that we’re doing safety enhancements on Fourth West in this area.”
The city also added a narrowing effect as you approach the crosswalk. It forces drivers to slow down because no student should have to fear for their life walking to or from school.
“One of the principles for Vision Zero is that we proactively seek out opportunities to improve the safety of the system. And so, part of that being proactive, is that we listen to people’s concerns, we don’t wait until there’s tragedy before we take action,” Larsen.
The city wants to hear from the public about crosswalks that may be a concern in your neighborhood or near your child’s school. It’s part of getting to the goal of zero fatalities on Utah roads.
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