Why did the turkey cross the road? To promote crosswalk safety

By Kyle B. Hansen

Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.

A turkey trying to cross Charleston Boulevard was nearly hit by passing motorists more than once Tuesday.

But this wasn’t just any turkey braving traffic. It was a Metro Police officer wearing a turkey costume as part of a crosswalk enforcement campaign.

Nearly every time Officer Michael Lemley crossed Charleston Boulevard in the crosswalk at 11th Street, a motorist failed to stop for him, despite his bright red turkey outfit.

And each time, another officer waiting on a motorcycle quickly pulled the offending vehicle over and wrote the driver a ticket.

“I’ve actually been straddling the white line as cars are going on both sides of me,” Lemley said, reflecting on his experiences in crosswalks. “It’s rather harrowing when you’re out there.”

Metro officers regularly conduct these types of crosswalk enforcement efforts — this was the sixth time this month for Lemley — but normally there is no turkey costume involved. Metro wanted to highlight the problem this week as Thanksgiving approaches and there are more pedestrians on the road, especially near shopping centers.

“The shopping season is getting ready to kick off and there’s a lot of people that just walk because of the price of gas,” Lemley said.

Tuesday’s enforcement took place on multiple crosswalks on Charleston near Maryland Parkway, but the main crosswalk under Metro’s watch was the one at 11th Street, where a 70-year-old man in a wheelchair was killed July 30 while in the crosswalk.

Lemley wasn’t the only person using the crosswalk that prompted tickets for motorists. In less than an hour, multiple other pedestrians had near misses with vehicles.

“It’s kind of scary,” said Darrin Murray, who regularly walks in the area and uses the crosswalk. “You never know what’s going to happen to you when you walk out. Some people just don’t know how to drive.”

Erin Breen, the director of UNLV’s Safe Community Partnership, which provided the turkey outfit, said in addition to teaching motorists to give the right-of-way to pedestrians, enforcement efforts also indirectly help pedestrians to use crosswalks instead of jaywalking.

“Motorists need to understand the role that they play in pedestrian safety,” she said. “By not giving the pedestrian the courtesy of stopping for them when they’re crossing where they’re supposed to be, they teach them there’s no reward for going there. They’re not going to stop for you anyway, so why bother?”

Metro officers will continue to ticket motorists who don’t stop at crosswalks, the officers said, sometimes with costumes and sometimes without.

“Watch for Santa Claus coming at Christmas,” Lemley warned.