Bill seeks repeal of statute on right of way at crosswalk
Copyright © 2003 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.
AUGUSTA — A teenager stepped from the curb and started to walk across the street at a marked pedestrian crossing in downtown Saco. A large truck in the right-hand lane stopped to let the boy cross, as required by law.
But a car in the left lane, whose driver apparently could not see the young pedestrian, passed the truck and kept going. The result was a near-tragedy, said Rep. Christopher O'Neil, who watched with horror as the episode unfolded.
"The kid must have flown 30 feet," said O'Neil, noting that the boy survived the accident, which occurred several years ago.
Now, O'Neil is sponsoring a bill to repeal Maine's law that says a motorist must yield the right of way to a pedestrian who is crossing within a marked crosswalk.
The very title of his bill, "An Act to Protect Motor Vehicles From Dangerous Pedestrians," has generated a round of chuckles and wisecracks in the State House among those who are convinced O'Neil can't be serious. But the Saco Democrat has news for them.
"It's not a joke bill," said O'Neil, who has no co-sponsors on the measure before the Transportation Committee.
O'Neil said it's time for Maine to rethink a law he believes has put too many people at risk of injury or death on the state's streets, particularly in congested downtown shopping areas.
In some cases, walkers who have a false sense of security under Maine's law step right into traffic, oblivious as to whether a car or truck is coming, he said.
"Talk to anybody on the street, and they'll tell you they're driven down the road and seen people just go, without regard to 4,000 pounds of steel coming along," said O'Neil.
In other cases, inattentive motorists simply miss marked pedestrian crosswalks, or the markings are obliterated by snow piles. During the winter, dust caked on windshields can obscure a driver's vision, and salt on the surface may cover a painted crosswalk.
Then there are instances in which well-meaning motorists stop as required, perhaps even signal to the pedestrian to cross, only to have a vehicle coming in the opposite direction miss the stop.
"I think (the law) hurts more than it helps," O'Neil said.
The police chief in Brunswick, one of the state's pedestrian trouble spots, disagrees.
"It's absolutely ludicrous to get rid of that law," Chief Jerry Hinton said Sunday.
In the few years after Hinton's arrival, four pedestrians lost their lives and several elderly people were hospitalized on or near the town's Maine Street, the widest downtown avenue in the state.
Police found a strong connection between driver errors and pedestrian accidents, and set out to correct the situation.
Crossings were redesigned with the help of a consultant, speed humps were installed, "pop-up targets" that mark crosswalks were put in place, and drivers were given informational brochures along with whistles and key chains at stop lights.
"Then, we started arresting (violators)," said Hinton. And while the problem hasn't gone away, police feel they're getting the problem under control.
After the near-fatality in Saco, O'Neil tried to get some hard numbers from state transportation and motor vehicle agencies on how many pedestrians have been struck in crosswalks statewide.
There were no clear answers, but the numbers did reveal a high number of rear-end collisions that likely occurred when cars suddenly stopped to let someone cross, said O'Neil.
State Bureau of Highway Safety Director Dick Perkins said Maine has five to 10 pedestrian fatalities a year, but how many occur in pedestrian crossings was not clear.
Perkins acknowledged there are particular problem areas, such as Brunswick, which has a lot of walkers with a college and military base nearby, and York, which fills up with tourists in the summer.
The safety bureau has not yet reviewed O'Neil's bill, so it has no position on it, Perkins said. He emphasized that pedestrians are not completely free of responsibility, noting that walkers do not have the right of way if they are not in marked crosswalks.
At the same time, "There's a responsibility there, especially by the driver, to be especially careful of pedestrians," Perkins said.
Hinton, the Brunswick police chief, shares the view that drivers as well as pedestrians have responsibilities. "There is a happy medium," he said.
On the Net:
Text of LD63: www.mainelegislature.org/legis/ bills/ld.asp?ld