First release from the State Police:
On November 3, 2016 at about 7:55PM, OSP Troopers and emergency personnel responded to the report of a vehicle versus pedestrian crash on Highway 22 (just west of West Salem).Second release (with a side of victim-blaming):
Preliminary information is a pedestrian attempted to cross Highway 22 when he was struck by two different vehicles. The pedestrian was pronounced deceased at the scene.
This is an active investigation. More information will be released as it becomes available.
On November 3, 2016 at about 7:55PM, OSP Troopers and emergency personnel responded to the report of a vehicle versus pedestrian crash on Highway 22W (near Frontage Road, just west of West Salem).This looks a little like a crash on Highway 22 that killed a person trying to cross in November 2013.
Preliminary investigation revealed a 50 year old male was crossing Highway 22 (from the south to north) when he was struck by a 2016 Chevrolet Cruz sedan traveling westbound on Highway 22. The driver of this vehicle told troopers she attempted to avoid the pedestrian but was unable to do so. After this impact, the pedestrian was struck by a second westbound vehicle, a 2007 Toyota Corolla.
This area of Highway 22 is not lit by street lights and there is no designated crosswalk. The pedestrian was wearing dark, non-reflective clothing. Alcohol consumption and improper position upon the highway are being investigated as contributing factors in the crash.
OSP was assisted by the Polk County Sheriff's Office and the Oregon Department of Transportation. Next of kin has not yet been made on the deceased. This is an active investigation. More information will be released as it becomes available.
OSP urges pedestrians and bicyclists to wear bright colors, have reflective material and use extra caution when there is limited visibility due to hours of darkness or inclement weather. Also be knowledgeable of the laws pertaining to biking or traveling near and on highways. Please visit the Oregon Department of Transportation's pedestrian safety page at http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/TS/pages/pedestrian.aspx for further information on pedestrian safety. [italics added]
If you are homeless and camping along the river, Highway 22 is a huge barrier, there are hardly any good places to cross, and speeds are high. If you are prosperous, your car breaks down, and you need to cross the highway, the same holds true. The auto firehose design of this urban highway is agnostic to class, race, or station, and ensures it is dangerous for other road users. There are design problems from our hydraulic autoism that overwhelm and penalize individual mistakes or defensible judgments any person on foot might make.
This post will be updated.
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| We say "troubling" but really, how troubled are we? |
Killed in 2015:
1 comment:
BikePortland notes a disparity in rhetoric:
"What’s also troubling is how the OSP treats these deaths to people outside of motorized vehicles so much differently than fatal crashes that involve only people driving cars.
While OSP felt the need to issue a special message about “pedestrians and bicyclists” safety because of three fatalities in nine days — they issued no such blame or special notice when seven people died and two were seriously injured in five separate collisions in the five days between October 21st and the 25th. That doesn’t include a 10-year-old girl who died Tuesday when the car she was in “drifted off” Highway 78, rolled several times, and ejected her from her seat....
Where is the special safety message from the OSP imploring people to use more caution while driving, slow down, and be extra careful?
The OSP is going out of their way to blame our most vulnerable road users while ignoring driving deaths. This not only shifts the agency’s safety resources and policy attention away from where it should be, but it results in an unnecessary fear of walking and biking and a corresponding lack of fear about the dangers of driving. This is the opposite of what we should be doing to get more people to walk and bike and fewer people to use cars.
OSP’s messaging needs to improve if the State of Oregon is going to reach their stated goal of zero deaths by 2035."
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