Re: the April 21 article "As pedestrians die, city accommodates bad drivers."
Tim Stellar makes excellent points in his observations about how bad it has gotten here in Tucson as far as traffic congestion, driver distractions, drivers openly violating laws, and pedestrians who sometimes contribute to their own demise by making poor decisions about when and where to cross the roadway and those who are killed following the rules by using a crosswalk. Our mayor and council sit on their hands and go with decisions to discourage pedestrians and encourage bad driving behavior. Oh that's right, the council has an advisory committee, but this is such a common sense problem that it shows the council's willingness to shove the responsibility elsewhere. Here's an idea: Lower the speed limits, give pedestrians more time at signaled intersections to get across the street, use school zone type signs at major pedestrian crossings that force drivers to slow down, have a squad of non-commissioned citizen volunteer traffic enforcers in every division writing tickets to jaywalkers, speeders and safety zone violators. The solutions are easy.
Richard Harper
Northeast side
Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.
