SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. – People living in one South Hill neighborhood are expressing their safety concerns regarding the crosswalk at the intersection of 57th Avenue and Crestline.
Sean Howlett, who uses the streets to train for upcoming marathons, said he’s willing to go the extra distance to avoid crossing there.
“This road is a little hazardous at time,” Sean said. “I tend to go to the traffic light for a safer route or just go completely the other way down the South Hill.”
NonStop Local spoke with people living near the crosswalk who said children’s safety, particularly those attending a nearby school like Carla Olman Peperzak Middle School. Another anonymous neighbor living directly by the crossing said speeding along 57th makes her nervous to cross.
So what can be done to help pedestrians feel safer crossing this part of 57th? Just down the road less than a quarter mile, a crosswalk has one feature Sean thinks would improve Crestline’s: flashing lights.
“Runners or walkers can hit and flash the lights like caution lights to let traffic know there’s somebody there,” Sean said. “It would be nice if there was some safety measure just to alert cars.”
Spokane County spokesperson Martha Lou Wheatley-Billeter told NonStop Local that people should take these concerns to the roads department at 509-477-3600 and to bring their ideas to their elected representative, i.e., their Spokane County Commissioner they can identify through the Spokane County website. She said the general number for Spokane County Commissioners is 509-477-2265
In the meantime, people living in that upper South Hill neighborhood simply ask that drivers be on the lookout for people trying to cross 57th at Crestline and mind both the crosswalks and the speed limits when traveling this road.
