Marquette University Police Chief Edith Hudson today announced plans for a Pedestrian Safety Initiative, which will take effect at the start of the 2019-20 school year. The initiative is designed to alleviate safety concerns at intersections on campus.
“One of the top safety concerns on campus is pedestrian safety, particularly at busy intersections,” Chief Hudson said. “With dedicated staff to monitor and facilitate crossing at busy intersections on campus, we can utilize our resources where they are needed most. This is a topic that is important to our students and it is important to us. These services will go above just crossing guard duties, with walking escorts available as needed.”
Student staff will serve as pedestrian safety specialists and will focus their efforts primarily on intersections and crossings where data shows the greatest need for increased safety. They will be equipped with bright vests, whistles and hand stop signs to bring added attentiveness to pedestrians crossing those streets, as well as added visibility for passing motorists.
As always, MUPD encourages vigilance when walking and crossing in the busy areas of campus.
Here are some important safety tips to remember when walking around campus:
- Don’t assume vehicles will stop. Make eye contact with drivers, don’t just look at the vehicle.
- Don’t rely solely on pedestrian signals. Look before you cross the road.
- Cross streets at marked crosswalks or intersections.
- Obey traffic signals such as “WALK/DON’T WALK” signs.
- Look left, right and left again before crossing the street.
- Watch for turning vehicles. Make sure the driver sees you and will stop for you.
- Look across ALL lanes you are about to cross and visually clear each lane before proceeding. Even if one motorist stops, do not assume drivers in other lanes can see you and will stop for you.
- Don’t wear headphones, text or talk on a cell phone while crossing.
The EagleEye app also offers a variety of safety resources, including a Friend Walk feature, which allows students to track their friends’ locations from point A to point B. The app is free and available for download from the Apple App Store and Google Play for Android; it can also be found by searching “Marquette EagleEye” in either app store.
For more information, visit MUPD’s website.