Editor:
This is not the first time I have been concerned about this problem in our city, but in the past two weeks, it has been magnified in my thinking again.
I recently stopped for a pedestrian in a cross walk near Jack & Janelles restaurant. While stopped I observed three cars in the lane next to me whiz by without stopping. My first question is, Are we as motorists so wrapped up in our little world that we dont even pause to observe that the car in the other lane may have stopped for a pedestrian and I need to do the same? Second, in light of the deaths and accidents surrounding pedestrians, is it really safe to cross the street even in the crosswalks of our great city of Cortez?
About a week after the above incident. I witnessed an accident near the new county building where a truck had stopped for a pedestrian and the car coming behind was not paying attention and rear-ended her. That same thing happened at another crosswalk to a friend of mine, and that accident totaled her car.
So what shall we do? Do we need to have bridges built over our street strictly for pedestrians? Or perhaps CDOT could install lights that give the pedestrian the right of way to walk. Perhaps our police department could patrol main street and ticket drivers 24/7. Or maybe, just maybe, we could be more attentive as drivers. especially in the crosswalk areas of downtown. I, for one, think we have had enough deaths and injuries of pedestrians in our city. How about you?
Elaine Beecher
Cortez
Via email