Campus Safety Police at Colorado College try to discourage student jaywalking on campus
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — As the new school year began on Monday at Colorado College, campus police are repeating their annual effort to emphasize crosswalk safety for students.
Cathy Buckley, the director of the Campus Safety Police, said that officers traditionally spend the first two weeks of the school year reminding students to use crosswalks and avoid the risks posed by jaywalking.
The challenge is that two busy streets — Nevada Avenue and Cascade Avenue — cut through the campus from north to south, and border the college from east to west.
As classes resumed on Monday, KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior saw many students jaywalking — even cutting between vehicles that were backed up to wait for students properly using crosswalks.
Jaywalking is likely common because it allows students to reach their destinations more quickly, but they may also be preoccupied with going to lunch, the campus routine, or eager to hang out with classmates.
Buckley said that she hopes the safety message eventually sinks in for all students.
“We’ve had some students hit by vehicles while crossing the street over the years,” she recalled. “But few have been serious, and none have been fatal. Sometimes it happened in crosswalks at night when drivers couldn’t see students or other pedestrians. The crosswalk is still the safest place to be. Pedestrians and drivers should make eye contact to ensure that they see each other.”
Buckley added that students face possible disciplinary action from the dean of students, if jaywalking becomes a particular problem or distraction.
Click here to follow the original article.