The streets of Columbia could soon be safer for pedestrians to cross.
Nine people die each year in Columbia due to traffic related accidents, and that exactly what the Mayor’s Task Force on Pedestrian Safety is trying to stop.
The task force gave their final report to City Council last night in which it outlined the need for a Vision Zero policy that would aim to eliminate all traffic fatalities. The plan itself focused on education, enforcement and engineering to solve the problem.
Leeann Johnson, co-chair of the education section and trauma program manager at MU Health Care, proposed a “One Percent for Safety Education” policy. The plan would require jone percent of the budget for every major road project to go towards traffic safety education.
Johnson also proposed the task forces’ recommendation to reduce speed limits and prohibit cell phone use while driving. The committee also expressed the need for Traffic Safety Engineer and new design parameters to decrease accidents.
“[Vision Zero] has been very successful in other cities and I think it can be very successful in our city,” Johnson said. “ I’ve lived in Columbia 33 years and I’m very very proud of it, and I think we can do better when it comes to pedestrian safety.”