Driving dangers

Sunday, March 25, 2012 | 2 a.m.

Just before St. Patrick’s Day, Metro Officer Michael Lemley donned a bright green leprechaun costume and went for a little walk.

With a glistening coat and a tall top hat, not to mention green-and-white stripped stockings, he was quite the sight. Or, at least, he should have been. But as he entered the crosswalks of a busy intersection, that wasn’t the case. Many drivers failed to take much, if any, note. They often failed to yield, and there were more than a few close calls as drivers buzzed by leprechaun Lemley.

Sadly, the close calls weren’t a surprise. Metro has been staging pedestrian enforcement efforts like this for a few years. Lemley has dressed as Santa Claus at Christmastime and as a Thanksgiving turkey and tried to make his way across some of the area’s most dangerous intersections.

The results have largely been the same. It’s not as if the drivers can’t see Lemley, who should be noticeable in eye-catching costumes.

So what gives?

Perhaps drivers don’t understand the law or they aren’t paying attention. Or, perhaps, they just don’t care. Let’s face it: Even after the new law banning drivers from using handheld cellphones went into full effect this year, it’s still not unusual to see someone on a cellphone as they cruise through an intersection.

Las Vegas is a town filled with distractions, but that doesn’t excuse the problems on roadways. A recent series of crashes put the total number of roadway fatalities in Southern Nevada, including those involving pedestrians, at more than 30 so far this year, above where it was the year before.

That’s discouraging. Over the past decade, Nevada officials have worked to decrease roadway fatalities, pushing more traffic safety measures, including better roadway design, changes to the law and campaigns to gain public notice. And overall, it seems to be working. The number of roadway deaths in Nevada has trended down over the past several years. Last year, there were 243 fatal crashes in Nevada, down from an all-time high of 432 in 2006.

However, there are still too many deaths, and if you’ve driven through the valley or walked along its roads, you know it can sometimes feel like you’re taking your life into your own hands. It’s noticeable to others as well. Transportation for America, a group that advocates for traffic safety, last year ranked Las Vegas as the sixth most dangerous metropolitan area in the nation for pedestrians.

Why is Nevada, particularly Las Vegas, considered a dangerous place to drive? We’ve heard several reasons, notably the 24/7 nature of Las Vegas and the lack of consistency in driving because so many people come from someplace else.

The question is what can be done. Although there will certainly be more things police and transportation officials can do, the onus is on those who use the roads. It’s up to us to put down the cellphone, ignore the distractions and be more careful.

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