Dozens of neon signs reminding drivers to yield to pedestrians were installed at Hartford crosswalks on Friday in an effort to improve safety in a city plagued by frequent pedestrian accidents.
The Center for Latino Progress funded the purchase of more than forty signs using part of a $170,000 grant won through the National Safety Council’s “Road to Zero” program, meant to help community organizations reduce roadway fatalities.
“Hartford has some of the highest accident rates and some of the least compliance with traffic laws,” said Gannon Long, who manages the initiative at the Hartford-based center.
She and her colleagues identified thirty locations for the signs using pedestrian and bicycle crash data compiled by the city’s Department of Public Works, she said.
Long believes the eye-catching yellow signs will be effective. “Drivers are more likely to take their foot off the gas. They automatically slow down at least a few miles an hour just by seeing something in the road,” she said.
During the evening rush hour on Friday, people walking in the city’s Parkville neighborhood said it can be hard to be sure when it’s safe to cross the street.
Gleyann Fontanez said she frequently observes drivers behaving badly throughout the city. Her clothing store, Latinas Fashion, is located across Park Street from the Parkville Community School.
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Fontanez said she has seen drivers fail to slow down or stop during times the crossing guard is helping children to and from school.
“They run red lights. They speed a lot,” she said.
She was delighted to see one of the new signs installed in the crosswalk outside her store, and said she has already noticed some improvements. “I’ve been seeing the difference,” she said.
Infrastructure improvements are very costly, but Long said the signs cost around $300 each, making them a relatively cheap investment.
Hartford sees a number of pedestrian-related crashes every year. Earlier this September, security cameras captured a brazen hit-and-run on Albany Avenue that killed 47-year old Chante Tucker.
Long said she initially hoped to install many more of the crosswalk signs in other areas of the city they identified as frequent crash zones. One of the issues standing in their way is that some of city’s neighborhoods, especially in Hartford’s North End, have few crosswalks.
