Columnist Susan Snyder: LV streets not friendly to pedestrians

Sunday, May 21, 2000 | 8:26 a.m.

Susan Snyder's column appears Sundays and Tuesdays. Reach her at snyder@lasvegassun.com or 259-4082.

A longtime resident once said Las Vegas' only capital crime is jaywalking.

Punishment is swift.

"We call it the seven-lane dash to death. We have incredibly wide streets," said Erin Breen of the Safe Community Partnership at UNLV.

Las Vegas is a lousy place to walk -- the nation's fourth most dangerous in 1999. Sidewalks abut busy streets instead of being set back from them. And crossing streets is like trotting across the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Clark County has two-thirds of the state's population and typically three-quarters of its pedestrian fatalities, said Bruce Mackey, state bicycle and pedestrian safety educator.

Of the 19 pedestrians killed statewide so far this year, 14 have died in Clark County, Mackey said. Last year 48 of the 71 pedestrians killed statewide died here.

Most are middle-age or senior adults, and many are hit during mid-block crossings, Mackey said.

Breen has interviewed people who cross in the middle of the block.

Many told her they feel safer crossing in the middle because cars aren't bunched up waiting for a light to change. And they don't have to step into a crosswalk, where right-turning drivers fail to wait.

"They don't care that the pedestrian has the right-of-way. They'll run them over," Breen said.

Las Vegas resident Clarence Shaffer says he has learned that the hard way. He doesn't own a car. He relies on the bus and his feet to take him where he wants to go.

"It's just terrible," he said. "The cabs try to kill you. The bus stops are too far apart. We all jaywalk if we ride the bus because in some places it's two blocks to the transfer bus."

Shaffer was waiting for a bus on Sahara Avenue just east of Decatur Boulevard. As he spoke, six people darted across Sahara behind him, each one stopping in the median just long enough to scan for cars.

Kirk Barrett of the Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute at Rutgers University has been studying the effects of road design on nonmotorized travelers. He says newer cities are bad for pedestrians by design.

Civil engineers suffer from "the windshield perspective," he says. They design roads only for motorized traffic, when in reality cars, pedestrians and bicyclists all must share.

Those who don't use motor vehicles are being "terrorized off the streets" by poor road design, he says. And newer cities in the West are among the worst.

Shaffer says it's pretty obvious that the Las Vegas Valley is being designed for cars ahead of people.

"The lights change too fast. You step a foot off the curb, and it's red again. They're not timed for us. They're timed for cars," he said. "This town is definitely not pedestrian friendly."

Breen says the Safe Community Partnership will focus on pedestrian awareness and safety this summer. Look for their television announcements and advertisements.

Better yet, look for those traveling on foot.

"We should be celebrating these people who are not driving vehicles and making air quality problems and traffic problems," Breen said. "We should be nice to them. Yet, we put them in harm's way."