Everyday when I walk from my apartment to North campus there are so many students making their way to class. The light at the intersection of Rosedale Ave. and High St. is a task to cross, with traffic getting agitated when students are crossing the street without the “walk” sign being displayed. No one takes the time to push the button to cross the street, because everyone is in a hurry to get to class. I am guilty of this as well, for I cross the street when it doesn’t say walk, causing traffic to build if the car is waiting to turn right. Over the past weeks, I have noticed how much traffic there is in front of Sykes Student Union. The reason that I have noticed the traffic is because I have almost been hit by a car numerous times this semester. I receive mean looks and stares from drivers as I step out into the crosswalk and nearly get run over by a car. And a lot of the time I see that the driver of the car is a student. People need to slow down when driving on Rosedale Ave. and let students/faculty/visitors cross the street in the crosswalk with ease.
I have heard stories from my years at WCU of students being hit by cars and buses on and around campus. Just last week, a student in one of my classes came into class late and told the class that he/she was hit by a car on the way to class. The driver didn’t stop when he/she was in the crosswalk. The driver probably didn’t even look twice, because it seems like most drivers don’t when breezing through the crosswalk.
I think that the new crosswalks that were placed around campus, on Rosedale Ave. and on High St. across from Asplundth Concert Hall, were a good idea to help students cross the road with ease.
However, if the drivers are not willing to stop, these signs are only causing more harm to the students trying to cross the road; who are expecting the drivers to stop.
Lauren Beley is a senior at West Chester University majoring in communication studies.