LCPD officer crossing 1000 North as a truck drives through the crosswalk.
LOGAN — We need to do better paying attention to pedestrians walking in crosswalks. That was the message from the Logan City Police Department Tuesday afternoon, during a “crosswalk sting” at 400 E. 1000 North.
In the last six weeks, police have responded to five personal injury accidents, where a pedestrian was hit while walking in a crosswalk. Two of those calls occurred on the same day.
Logan City Police Assistant Chief Jeff Simmons said the problem appears to be that motorists are not paying attention. They are disregarding crosswalk signs and not yielding to people, as they cross the street.
“This is why we do those crosswalk stings,” said Simmons. “It is to promote safety and educate people. We advertise it widely so that people will know what is going on. It is not about writing tickets, although we issue a lot of warnings and citations during these stings, but it is more about getting people to understand that they have to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks.”
The operation involved two plain clothed officers that took turns crossing 1000 North in the school crosswalk. As they crossed the street, nearby spotters recorded traffic flow, watching for vehicles that failed to yield the right of way to the pedestrians. Those that didn’t stop properly were pulled over by waiting officers.
During the four hours, officers conducted 116 stops. 73 drivers were given warnings and educated about yielding for pedestrians. 29 others were given tickets because they were recorded blatantly disregarding the officers in the roadway. 14 more drivers were given tickets for texting while driving or expired registrations.
Utah law states the operator of a vehicle approaching a school crosswalk must come to a complete stop if the crosswalk is occupied by a person.
Simmons said police believe a lot of motorists get into “autopilot” when they are driving and are not alert. Others though seem to have forgotten what the laws are.
“I see it personally. I walk my dog around the area and you have to sometimes walk out into the street for people to stop for you. Some people do very well but others just completely either don’t understand or just blow through. If you are not careful, people can get hurt.”
Officers said they are hopeful that as temperatures warm up and more people go outside, the recent spike in auto-pedestrian accidents will also not go up. They expressed gratitude for the public’s attention and support keeping the community safe.
will@cvradio.com