Old-timey Pedestrian Safety

For many, pedestrian safety is a top concern in Durham. I have written in the past about how much I love living in Durham's walkable downtown, but certainly, like most communities, Durham could use a little traffic calming to ensure pedestrians are safe.

Enter: Cost-effective, historic-district-friendly, old-timey pedestrian safety!

In front of Town hall you'll find a bucket of red flags secured to a wooden pole on either side of Newmarket Road/Route 108.

The instructions are simple: grab a flag, wait for traffic to stop, give a thank you wave as you cross, and then place the flag in the bucket on the other side of the road. Allow me to demonstrate!

I talked to Todd Selig, Durham's Town Administrator, about his efforts to increase pedestrian safety in this historic area.

"Our hope is this low cost, low profile innovation will enhance safety for pedestrians using the crosswalk in front of the Town Hall along busy Route 108 by making them more visible for motorists. If the pilot program is successful in front of the Town Hall, we may consider expanding it to the crosswalk between the Durham Community Church and St. George’s on Church Hill. Time will tell and staff be monitoring over the next several weeks. The biggest concern is that the flags will disappear in the wee hours of the morning, but they are not too expensive to replace."

Todd Selig

Thank you to the innocent vehicles passing by for your cooperation in the making of this blog post!