CSU crosswalk needs a safer solution

Every student, especially on a freezing cold walk to school, has had that sneaking thought while crossing the street that the university bus doesn’t come to a complete stop, taking them out of commission, and in turn, entitling them to the rumored “free tuition”. 

While this might sound like the greatest trade deal in the history of trade deals, maybe ever, students would probably be singing a different tune if they were laying in a hospital bed wondering if they will ever walk again, let alone go back to school. 

The University does a fine job at allowing pedestrian traffic flow the the campus, particularly with the introduction of the blinking crossing lights located on Warren Street and Stadium Road. These blinking lights indicate to oncoming traffic that students, faculty or staff are crossing the road, and that they must slow down. 

There is one location on campus that seems to be a death trap though during high trafficked times, and that is the bus stop outside the CSU. 

Because of the sheer size of the buses that pass through on a daily basis and the cars parked alongside the road, there is little visibility for both pedestrians to see oncoming traffic, as well as oncoming traffic to see pedestrians until it is potentially too late. 

With foot traffic coming from the pay lot, as well as from incoming buses, there is an immense number of pedestrians throughout the day, and if drivers are unable to see them coming, then we may run into a “free tuition” situation as mentioned above. 

There needs to be some sort of control tactic put in place by the University to better protect pedestrians from the worry of getting hit by traffic driving through during peak hours. 

This could be done in a number of ways, including increasing the usage of crossing guards, similar to their usage at the Maywood and Ellis intersection. This would put someone out there who could see where the majority of people are coming from, and allow for more efficient flow of traffic. 

Another option that could be implemented would be another crossing light as mentioned before. These lights would offer two distinct advantages. The first being that crossing pedestrians would funnel through the same crosswalk, rather than the scattered nature that happens now. This would make drivers more aware, as there would be only one spot for pedestrians to be at any one time.

The second reason would be that it allows for pedestrian crossings to signal to drivers that they are there and about to move. Especially when hidden behind the curtain of buses, this would allow for a way to give ample warning before they peek their head around the front of a bus. 

During busy times it’s difficult and can be dangerous for pedestrians to cross the road outside of the CSU, and thus, the University should implement a better plan to benefit those crossing the street.

(Julia Barton/The Reporter)