Commentary
| About |
| A summary of our history and goals. |
| Get Involved |
| Five ways to get involved with bicycle advocacy in the Pioneer Valley! |
| Resources |
| Local government contacts and bicycle advocacy groups. |
| Biking Tips |
| How to be a bicyclist! |
| Newsletters |
| All of our informational newsletters. |
Cyclist's Death Proves Need for Safer Streets
September 24, 2005
The violent death in Northampton Thursday of 23-year old bicyclist Meg Sanders under the wheels of a 13-ton truck is a tragic blow not only to her friends and family, but to the entire community she devoted her young life to serving. MassBike/Pioneer Valley sends its deepest condolences to everyone she touched.
Sanders' loss is especially painful considering that better road design might have prevented it. MassBike/Pioneer Valley rejects the notion that the fatal crash was an unavoidable "freak accident," and calls now on the City of Northampton to protect against similar tragedies in the future by immediately taking the following steps:
- Extend the Elm St. bike lanes to South St. Splitting Elm Street's eastbound traffic into two narrow lanes produces a hostile and dangerous environment for all road-users, including pedestrians on the sidewalk. It encourages speeding, and it requires the eastbound bike lane to end abruptly at John M. Greene Hall. MassHighway in 2001 converted Route 9 from four lanes to two lanes west of the Coolidge Bridge. Northampton should now do the same for a section of Route 9 with much denser development and higher bicycle and pedestrian use. The city should also fully consider a modern roundabout for the Routes 9/10/66 intersection to improve safety.
- Accelerate the process of instituting traffic calming on city streets. Traffic calming techniques - speed tables, bump-outs, narrower lanes, etc. - can prevent crashes like the one that killed Meg Sanders. Mayor Higgins' recent commitment to fund development of a city traffic calming program is laudable. But the city's efforts should be stepped up, and results should appear on the ground, not just on paper.
- Appoint and fund a full-time staff person to the Transportation and Parking Commission. This step was one of three major recommendations made four years ago by the Safer Streets Task Force, but was not followed by the city. Without paid staff support, many excellent safety enhancement ideas will continue to go largely unrealized.
- Commit to funding the development of at least one mile per year of bicycle lanes for the next ten years. Bike lanes help provide a safe corridor in traffic for bicyclists. To date the city's only labeled bike lanes, paid for by Smith College, are along a few blocks of Elm St. The city should also direct the Department of Public Works to adhere to the bike lane guidelines in the Municipal Transportation Plan.
- Establish traffic safety classes in city public schools. School children need to know where and how to ride their bikes safely in traffic, and as drivers in the future they'll need to know how to share the road with bicyclists. This may save not only their own lives but others' as well.