Letters to the Editor
Issue date: 9/28/09 Section: Opinion
My letter is in response to Sara Gregory's article, "Campus Pedestrians: Pick up your tempo." Believe it or not, I was preparing to write this letter prior to reading her article. Sara, I fully agree with you! Thanks for expressing this to campus pedestrians. There are several instances when pedestrians have been struck by vehicles and later ticketed due to jaywalking.
If I remember correctly, it was not too long ago that I read about a man in St. Louis being ticketed after being struck by a car. Of course, he attempted to cross one of the busiest streets downtown in an area without a crosswalk. In my opinion jaywalkers should be ticketed more often! Here's an idea; How about WIU start ticketing these offenders and using the revenue to lower parking rates? The crosswalks are there for a reason! I'm not claiming to be perfect, because nobody is perfect. However, I do have the common courtesy to share the road and respect the law.
When people step in front of traffic in a zone not suited for crossing, it is at their own risk. Additionally, it disrupts traffic flow, especially when volume is heavy. It would be nice if some students around here respected the law. It's pretty ironic how this school is known for the LEJA program, yet in more than just the jaywalking issue, nobody seems to know the law!
Respectfully, Jared Maples
_______________________________________
Class lets out and the mass swarm of students plow out of the buildings on Western Avenue avoiding hitting each other through the doors and making it to their next class. Although not walking through a crosswalk across the street is not only dangerous but also illegal, the pedestrian always has the right away. In a small town, such as Macomb, crosswalks are limited. Take this in perspective; there are four crosswalks between the two main intersections in which most of the classroom buildings lie on. To have to detour your walk to class just to use a crosswalk is just obscene. Within a college campus, students use the street just as much as cars do.
If I remember correctly, it was not too long ago that I read about a man in St. Louis being ticketed after being struck by a car. Of course, he attempted to cross one of the busiest streets downtown in an area without a crosswalk. In my opinion jaywalkers should be ticketed more often! Here's an idea; How about WIU start ticketing these offenders and using the revenue to lower parking rates? The crosswalks are there for a reason! I'm not claiming to be perfect, because nobody is perfect. However, I do have the common courtesy to share the road and respect the law.
When people step in front of traffic in a zone not suited for crossing, it is at their own risk. Additionally, it disrupts traffic flow, especially when volume is heavy. It would be nice if some students around here respected the law. It's pretty ironic how this school is known for the LEJA program, yet in more than just the jaywalking issue, nobody seems to know the law!
Respectfully, Jared Maples
_______________________________________
Class lets out and the mass swarm of students plow out of the buildings on Western Avenue avoiding hitting each other through the doors and making it to their next class. Although not walking through a crosswalk across the street is not only dangerous but also illegal, the pedestrian always has the right away. In a small town, such as Macomb, crosswalks are limited. Take this in perspective; there are four crosswalks between the two main intersections in which most of the classroom buildings lie on. To have to detour your walk to class just to use a crosswalk is just obscene. Within a college campus, students use the street just as much as cars do.
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