Greater City Providence
There has been an alarming number of crashes involving pedestrians in the last few weeks:
WPRI: Pedestrian hit by vehicle near Taunton Green (March 1st)
A Taunton man is recovering after he was hit by a vehicle in the city Thursday afternoon.
Police said the man was struck around 12:15 p.m. while crossing the road near the Taunton Green.
Patrolman David DeOliveira happened to be in the area and was able to quickly respond and render first aid to the pedestrian, identified as Kristian Belcher.
WPRI: Dartmouth police investigating fatal hit-and-run accident (March 4th)
Dartmouth police are searching for a driver in a deadly hit-and-run accident.
Stasha Lynn Faria, 33, of Westport, was struck and killed near 653 State Road on Saturday night around 7 p.m.
Eyewitness News spoke with family members of the victim, who said she was optimistic, artistic, and a wonderful mother. Now they are hoping the driver turns themselves into police.
The Providence Journal: 74-year-old West Greenwich woman killed while crossing Route 102 (February 27th)
A 74-year-old woman was killed Monday night while trying to cross Route 102 near 860 Victory Highway, according to the police.
The police said that Betty Turnbull was walking her dog when she was struck at about 6:30 p.m. by a southbound car driven by Gab-Andy Montervil, 30, of Warwick.
WPRI: Woman dies after being hit by car in Providence (February 26th)
A Pawtucket woman who was hit by a car in Providence Friday night has died as a result of her injuries.
According to Providence police, Frances Rushlow was struck while crossing Smithfield Avenue in the area of Colfax Street.
Rushlow, 53, was rushed to Rhode Island Hospital with serious injuries, to which she eventually succumbed, police said.
The driver, identified as Derrick Santos, 33, of Pawtucket, was issued traffic violations for not using reduced speed or due care while driving.
This is continuing a bad trend, in 2017 there were 21 ped fatalities just in RI, up from 14 in 2016. But motorists often think they are entitled to drive dangerously and speed, witness all the push-back from fines when caught by speed cameras going at least 11 mph over the speed limit in school zones.
“I am entitled to drive at deadly speed through your neighborhood, past your school, in my soundproof chamber while distracted by any device I choose. If you get run over it is your fault for wearing headphones, for wearing dark clothes etc.”
They’ve been having problems with this in Canada as well. There was an opinion piece in the Globe and Mail this morning by an Associate Professor of Planning who stated Toronto politicians have been ignoring traffic calming solutions at the public’s peril.
He cited the Netherlands, where in 1971, 3,300 people were killed (300 of them were children) a year in street accidents involving cars. There was a public outcry and politicians took steps to reshape the car-oriented streets into ones that could be used by everyone:
‘When cars slow down, not only are streets safer, but they become more enjoyable places to be. When good cycling infrastructure is present, people stop being “cyclists” and instead are just normal people going about ordinary, mundane activities. We need to stop thinking that bike lanes are only for “cyclists” and better sidewalks or more crossings are only for “pedestrians.” They are for everyone and they give people choices as to how they get around.’