May 27, 2009: Cross about no crosswalk

Originally appeared on The Opinion Shop blog of The News & Observer:

If plans haven’t changed, today is the day the Town of Knightdale is going to see how many of its residents are crazy enough to attempt to cross the nine lanes of traffic on Knightdale Boulevard (formerly U.S. 64) on foot.

There is no crosswalk there. The idea is to see how many people are attempting this feat without one so we can see whether a crosswalk is warranted.

Everyone who thinks this is absurd, raise your hand.

When a town allows the construction of a strip mall with dozens of fabulous stores across a highway from a subdivision with nearly 700 houses, new apartments by the hundreds and yet another subdivision, a crosswalk should be a given, not an afterthought.

Knightdale periodically sends out a survey to see what residents think would make the growing town even better than it is. On the last one, I emphatically (with underlines and exclamation points!) said we need a crosswalk on Knightdale Boulevard. My nearly 15-year-old has begged repeatedly to be allowed to walk to Dick’s Sporting Goods by himself. But there is no way — none — I’m going to let him do that without a crosswalk to get him there.

Now it’s nearly summer break for traditional-calendar students, and Knightdale teens by the dozens will be looking for things to do and places to go. How many are going to be dangerously dashing across a major highway with Target in their sights?

But to see whether a crosswalk is warranted, the town is going to count pedestrians today from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., when most of the people who attempt that crazy crossing are in school. Or when most of us who have often thought a bicycle ride that had at its end a reward of a Chick-fil-A dream cup would be heaven are at work.

I understand a crosswalk would slow down the light cycles on Knightdale Boulevard. But that’s what crossings with push buttons are for, to allow enough time only when someone is waiting to cross. And people are going to cross any way. It’s better to be proactive now than to wait until someone is hurt, regardless of how many people do or do not cross that road today.

Towns everywhere in the Triangle should want to be able to tout walkability — to keep us out of our cars as much as possible. The fact that this far into the 21st century planners (whether Knightdale or N.C. Department of Transportation) didn’t put a crosswalk there to begin with is nearly inexcusable, and it’s time to paint those lines and put up those boxes. Now.