The sound of ambulances on Queens Boulevard is continuous! Pedestrians on Queens Boulevard are being run down daily and are being critically injured by moving vehicles. Some pedestrians have been left paralyzed. Many injured pedestrians do not survive!
Queens Boulevard is a dangerous place. People are getting killed everyday. We must find a way to solve this problem. This problem has to be solved immediately. This problem keeps getting worse and worse. We must put an end to it.
More and more pedestrians are dying crossing Queens Boulevard every year. This problem has gotten worse and worse since 1991. Over these passed nine years 72 pedestrians have been crashed (Roberto Santiago and Pete Donohue, Daily News, Boulevard of death takes a toll, January 11, 2001).
Sofia Leviyev the 14 year old Rego Park girl who died November 30 after being struck by a speeding minivan as she crossed against a red light at 67th street. Days later, off duty, firefighter Derek Kuhland, 31, was hit by a speeding car at 55th avenue. (Tamer El-Ghobashy, Daily News, “Safety Push hailed On Queens Boulevard,” December 12, 2000). While inquiring I found out that a Columbian family of 3 were run down by a car and were critically injured and are now at a local hospital.
This is a scary problem, because it could happen to anyone. Even I worry when crossing this street. I just keep hoping that it will not happen to me. Marilyn Marines, a sixty three year old pedestrian says, “I have a lot of trouble crossing, lights change too fast and it doesn’t give me enough time to cross.”(Marilyn Marines, Telephone Interview, Jun 3, 2006).
If this problem isn’t solved more and more pedestrians will die! We must find a solution to this problem. There should be more crossing guards to help people cross through the street. They should give tickets to speeders and jaywalkers. The department of transportation can change the timing on the lights. They can also put more islands in the middle of the streets. There is another alternative solution. I have seen that some pedestrians go through the underground subway to get to the other side instead of crossing. I think this is a great idea!
Although many people would not agree with these solutions and argue that the people are safe enough and solutions would waste time and money. Let’s remember though: 72 pedestrians died in nine years! “Not all people died because they don’t follow the law, I have seen people run at a red light because the lights changed so fast,” Venecia Collado, telephone interview, says.
We must put the lives of people first! The city Transportation Department recently completed the first phase of a $5 million safety project for the Boulevard. The money will be for high visibility crosswalk upgrades for signal lights in the middle of long blocks. Also, more red light time to let pedestrians cross during off brake hours is needed.
This problem has to be solved immediately. Innocent people are dying constantly! Can you imagine having a family member or friend dying trying to do a simple thing like crossing a street? It is a heartbreaking tragedy. If we take time to help prevent these misfortunes it would be a great help for everyone. You could be saving your own life!
I am committed in solving this problem. Please join me in changing Queens Boulevard. If we have a large number of people helping in changing Queens Boulevard, we can make a difference in the world.
Editorials