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Crosstown Traffic
Crosstown Traffic is all about getting around in the Triangle. Bad drivers and traffic hassles. Gas taxes and transportation politics. Public transit and other auto alternatives.
The blog is maintained by N&O transportation reporter Bruce Siceloff, whose Road Worrier column is published each Tuesday.
This traffic is two-way. What do you think? Leave a comment or email Bruce with questions, links, tips or gripes.
Raleigh-Cary rated sixth most dangerous metro area for pedestrians
Submitted by BruceSiceloff on 11/09/2009 - 11:33
A new study rates the Raleigh-Cary area the sixth most dangerous metro area in the nation for pedestrians.
Forty-three pedestrians died in traffic accidents here in 2007 and 2008, a rate of 2.02 pedestrian deaths for every 100,000 residents, according to a report released today by Transportation for America, a coalition of more than 300 national groups that lobbies for transportation improvements.
In a suburban area where only 1.6 percent of local residents walk to work, that high death rate gives Raleigh-Cary a Pedestrian Danger Index of 128.6, according to the Transportation for America report.
The danger list, which ranked the nation’s 50 largest metro areas, was dominated by fast-growing suburban regions where fewer than 2 percent of workers commute on foot.
The Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord area, also with 43 pedestrian deaths in 2007-08, ranked 12th on the danger list. Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord had 1.29 pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents, in an area where only 1.2 percent of workers walking to work.
About the blogger
Bruce Siceloff reports on traffic and transportation. An N&O reporter and editor since 1976, he took over the Road Worrier column in 2003. Lately he drives I-40 with the cruise control set at 62 mph. E-mail Bruce or call him at 919-829-4527.Want to post a comment?
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Comments
Sidewalks
Tue, 11/10/2009 - 15:35 — jmk446Many roads in our area are narrow and have no shoulder and no sidewalk. Consider 1010 Road in Cary and Apex and Old Raleigh Road where you cannot a walk on continuous sidewalk from the high school to the library or the park. Consider Hillsborough Street where there is no continuous sidewalk from Meredith to NCSU's north campus or from the College of Veterinary Medicine to Meredith. Is Western Boulevard any better?
It's staggering how un-foot
Mon, 11/09/2009 - 16:44 — Id_Create_a_MemberIt's staggering how un-foot and bike friendly this area is. There are few places were you can actually walk or bike safely in a functional sense (that is, not just getting exercise by circling the Greenway). Try walking or biking to your local grocery store, and you'll see just how tough it is. I prefer to walk or bike, but I've given up and joined the masses in my car. I imagine Saudi oil princes send our local developers and street planners Christmas...er, Ramadan cards each year.
It's not that the
Mon, 11/09/2009 - 15:14 — jugbandIt's not that the pedestrians are crazy. They're just used to commuting in dangerous environments, which would understandably seem crazy to someone who drives everywhere. It's very difficult to cross Capital Boulevard on foot, even at the lights. Not to mention that at some parts you have to walk over a mile to get to a light. The more car-centric city planning is, the more dangerous it is to travel using alternative means. Unfortunately, not everyone has the option of driving. And yea, it's waaaay too easy to get a driver's lisence.
Pedestrians are nuts!
Mon, 11/09/2009 - 14:34 — dwainsI don't travel on Capital Blvd all that often, but it seems that nearly every time I go through the Mini-City area I see some nut crossing all six lanes in the middle of the street. They seem to have a death wish. "I just gota get to Lowes Food - NOW!"
Drivers and Pedestrians both to blame
Mon, 11/09/2009 - 12:38 — jayhurstPart of the reason for this is inattentive drivers, and folks who really need another city road test before ordering up another driver's license online. Part of the reason is also foolish pedestrians - the one's who wait for a crossing light in the street rather than on the sidewalk and back from the curb; who dart out from between parked cars like toddlers chasing a ball; who would rather jaywalk against the light (and into crossing traffic) rather than going fifteen yards either direction for a crosswalk; and who flat ignore traffic lights with some weird "pedestrian-entitlement" mentality (I'm thinking specifically of Chapel Hill here, a little off the map but appropos). In short, a lot of these deaths wouldn't occur if both drivers and pedestrians exercised a little more common sense.