Safety Should be a Concern

(to Maryann Edwards, mayor of Temecula, California)

In today’s world, five minutes can allow for a stop at Starbucks, a mini-cram session before a big calculus test, or a conversation between girls about the cute football quarterback. In order to squeeze in those extra few minutes, dozens of students dash across Deer Hollow Way between Great Oak High School and Birdsall Sports Park on a daily basis. For years, requests have been made for a crosswalk to be constructed with hopes of increasing the safety in these daily endeavors, but for years these requests have been turned down. It is time for these requests to be heard and responded to in a sensible manner.

At the Temecula Public Safety/Traffic Commission meeting held on Thursday July 24, 2008, a request was formally made for a marked crosswalk to be constructed on Deer Hollow Way across from Great Oak High School; however, the request was denied. According to a San Diego study, twice as many pedestrian accidents occur at locations with a marked crosswalk as opposed to those without a designated crosswalk. If a crosswalk were to be made to connect Great Oak to Birdsall Park across the five-lane street, there would theoretically be more accidents than if things were to be leaved the way they are. This argument was a major factor in making the decision not to implement a new crosswalk, but why should these two alternatives be the only alternatives?

On October 16, 2009, three girls were hit by a car traveling down Deer Hollow Way. Luckily, none of the girls suffer from long lasting injuries, but what if they did? What if one of them had been killed when they were hit? Because drugs and alcohol weren’t a factor in the collision, it was simply a manner of carelessness. My belief is that this accident could have been prevented. There are arguments against why a crosswalk wouldn’t be effective, why a stop sign wouldn’t be obeyed, and why an expensive controlled crosswalk isn’t worth the money. However, despite the time and money required to implement these safety measures, every effort should be made to devise a way to increase safety for the 3,200 students at Great Oak High School. The fact that there has already been an accident on Deer Hollow Way suggests that there may be more in the future. It is absurd to sit around and do nothing.

Not enough effort has been dedicated towards ensuring the safety of Great Oak High School students. Instead of sitting around and thinking of reasons why there shouldn’t be a crosswalk to connect Great Oak and Birdsall Park, plans should be devised to get a student safely from one place to another.

Sincerely,
Capella Kehoe