Five Pedestrians Struck, Two Killed in One Weekend
On the weekend of January 13th to 16th, five pedestrians were hit by drivers, and two were killed. Details from the police have been scant, and many of these crashes leave us with more questions than answers. These are the questions we should be asking to better understand what led to these crashes, and how infrastructure could keep similar crashes from happening in the future.
Babcock Boulevard
The pedestrian was hit near the pole in the lower left of the image, where you can see parts of a makeshift memorial.
On January 13th, Elizabeth Griser was walking along Babcock Boulevard near the Sheetz in Ross Township when she was struck and killed by a driver who then fled the scene.
Where did this happen? It is important to know where on the road this happened. Was Beth crossing the street, and the driver failed to yield? The nearest marked crosswalk is over a quarter of a mile away, and adding a crosswalk somewhere in that span would greatly improve crossing safety. Was she walking along the shoulder, and if so, was the driver entering or leaving the road, or not staying in their lane? Babcock Boulevard has no sidewalks in this section and adding a curb, on-street parking, and street trees would protect people from parallel cars.
Why was Beth walking here? What was her reason for walking where it is neither pleasant or safe to do so? Her brother mentioned that she was meeting him here after work to head home, but why here? Along Babcock Boulevard there really isn’t a better or safer place to meet, and the Sheetz is at least well-lit, unlike many parts of the street. Why was she walking and not driving or taking a bus? There are many reasons one might walk rather than drive, from eco-consciousness to wanting to save money, all of which are good and rational decisions. Beth lived in Mars, and traveling between suburban communities via transit is often hard (Google Maps won’t even provide directions between the Sheetz and Mars). For these reasons, walking here is a logical activity that the infrastructure doesn’t provide for.
West Carson Street
On January 14th, Zachary Gleason was hit by a driver who, as on Babcock Boulevard, fled the scene. First responders found Zachary lying on the 1600 block of West Carson Street. He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Where did this happen? The fact that Zachary was found in the roadway suggests he was crossing the street. From the reports it is unclear if he was crossing at the marked crosswalk or not. If so, changes should be considered that would make crossing at the intersection safer, such as leading pedestrian intervals, median refuge islands, or a raised intersection. If he wasn’t crossing at the crosswalk, we shouldn’t throw our hands up and blame him for his demise; we should ask:
Why would a rational person make the decision to cross this street where there isn’t a crosswalk? The nearest crosswalk to this intersection is at the West End Bridge a third of a mile away; while I was there taking pictures I saw several people cross mid-block. Would it make sense to add a crosswalk somewhere between these intersections? Where was Zachary walking from, where was he walking to, and are there pedestrian infrastructure improvements between those two points that would have made him safer?
Why was Zachary walking here? While both pedestrian and transit infrastructure is much better on West Carson Street than on Babcock Boulevard, it still isn’t the most pleasant route, and there aren’t a lot of nearby destinations. Would Zachary have taken a bus if they ran more frequently, or if the stop infrastructure was better?
Vandergrift Bridge
On January 15, a pedestrian was hit by a driver on the Vandergrift Bridge in Vandergrift. They were airlifted to the hospital.
Where did this happen? Both available news articles report the crash happening “on the Vandergrift Bridge,” but it’s unclear where exactly that means. On the bridge, there are Jersey barriers separating the sidewalks and travel lanes, so a pedestrian would have to have a really good reason to jump over that barrier and put themselves in danger. What’s more likely is that is was somewhere between the span and the nearest intersection on the Vandergrift side of the bridge (as Vandergrift police and firefighters are listed as the first responders). In this space, the road crosses 1st Street, essentially an alley with no crosswalks, and intersects with Sherman Avenue. The right turn lane from the bridge onto Sherman Avenue is not stop controlled and has a very wide radius, increasing pedestrian crossing time as well as vehicle speed. Reducing the turn radius at the intersection, painting ladder crosswalks rather than the faded white lines that exist, and adding some form of traffic control at the intersection would make it much safer for pedestrians.
Fifth Avenue
On January 16th, a wheelchair user was crossing Fifth Avenue at Smithfield Street. when they were hit by a driver.
Where did this happen? The article suggests that the wheelchair user was crossing at the intersection, in the crosswalk. That leads us to ask where the driver was. Were they on Fifth Avenue and failed to yield? Some form of traffic calming could slow drivers and discourage running lights. Were they turning from Smithfield Street onto Fifth? This would be from the dedicated right turn lane, which is unnecessary, and doesn’t exist on either the previous or the following block. Eliminating this turn lane would slow turning drivers and provide an opportunity for curb extensions that would further improve the safety of the street.
Route 119
Also on January 16th, David Green was hit by the driver of a pickup truck while walking along Route 119 in Hempfield. A helicopter parked on the highway and took David to the hospital.
Where did this happen? While we don’t have an exact location, we do have a decent understanding of the conditions where it happened. David was walking along the left shoulder of the southbound lanes just before the Technology Drive exit. The police claim he “walked onto the road as the pickup approached.”
Why was David walking on a highway? While Route 119 lacks the “no pedestrians” signs of some grade-separated highways, everything about its design suggests that it is a limited-access, car-only facility. How did David find himself in the middle of this highway? Where we he coming from, and where was he going? Why did he choose this obviously unsafe route? While it would be hard to answer some of these without talking to David, it may be that he was making the most rational decision he could given his circumstances. The crash happened near the center of an over three-mile gap between crossings of Route 119, and even if he had walked all the way to one of these locations, there isn’t sidewalk on any of these streets, so they wouldn’t feel much safer than the highway. Frankly, there is simply no safe route to get anywhere in this area without being in a car. Sidepaths and trails could be an appropriate way to move pedestrians and bikes parallel to this road, and sidewalks on the existing crossings would make those more attractive to walkers.
What do all these crashes have in common? Many of the crash sites are unique in some way. Babcock Boulevard is a sidewalkless stroad. West Carson Street has decent existing infrastructure. The Vandergrift Bridge is in a small town. Fifth Avenue is in a walkable area. Route 119 is a highway. But there is one thing most of them have in common: all but 5th Avenue are owned by PennDOT. Over half of pedestrian fatalities in the Greater Pittsburgh region happen on PennDOT roads (data will be shown in a forthcoming project). Priorities at PennDOT need to change if we’re going to make their roads safer, and they won’t change without political pressure.
2/24/2023 Update: a previous version of this post said that all the above roads are owned by PennDOT. This was due to a misunderstanding of state-provided GIS information: 5th Avenue is in fact a non-state federal aid road.