Upon hearing the sad news that yet another student was hit by a car on College Avenue, we at The Lawrentian commend the university for working with the City of Appleton to find a solution to this persistent problem.
The City of Appleton and the University are currently discussing a potential crosswalk with pedestrian-operated stoplights. They are also discussing new signage and lighting around the existing pedestrian crosswalks. We commend both the city and the university for working together on this problem. However, the potential changes will not be implemented until the summer of 2012.
With winter quickly approaching, bringing with it worsening driving conditions, it seems sensible to find a temporary solution by the time students return for Winter Term. In the meantime, Lawrence has taken additional measures with the city to draw attention to the crosswalks between the Conservatory, Plantz Hall, and the north side of campus.
We’d also like to commend the school on its efforts to inform and warn students of these dangerous areas. Likewise, we are glad that the Appleton Post Crescent and local news channels have also covered the crosswalk issue. This problem needs to be addressed by both Lawrentians and Appletonians. Both pedestrians and drivers need to know the laws regarding pedestrian crosswalks — and to also abide by those laws.
We encourage students and Appleton residents to review crosswalk laws, and to exercise extreme caution while near the College Avenue crosswalks.