Once again about pedestrians and crossings

Many

Minsk citizens are unhappy with the closure of the pedestrian crossing near the shopping center “Zamok”. Who is to blame and what can be done?

We sympathize with our favorite singer Yadviga Poplavskaya, who was hit by a car in Minsk 17.01.2018. Unfortunately, she’s got a broken leg, so let her recovery be painless, fast and successful. Yadviga Konstantinovna reports that the accident  happened on Filimonova Street, where there is a sign “Pedestrian crossing” and corresponding  road markings, although there is no traffic light: “Two cars stopped to let me cross the road, and a third did not stop and hit me …”

Sympathizing with the singer, we must understand that she is only one of hundreds of people who got injured under similar circumstances. It’s horrible that there are so many such accidents on pedestrian crossings.

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Due to the lightning fast pace of development, before we knew it, Minsk turned into a super-modern, extremely convenient city for… cars. The cars cram our wide avenues, city rings, streets, alleys, yards. For some time we were pleased with this achievement (our life is not so bad after all), but as we compare our city conditions to that across the world, we suddenly realize: favouring motorization, we’ve fallen behind again. In large European cities, that experienced an automobile boom long ago, there are other priorities now. It’s bad to have too many cars in a city. It’s good to have streets available for cyclists, freely roaming pedestrians, children playing without fear. It is a sign of civilization. Or are we not yet fully aware of this?

“Dear authorities of the city of Minsk. I appeal to you in connection with the adoption of an unreasonable decision to close the stopping point of the BelExpo NEC on Pobediteley Avenue. The incident that happened – I sincerely sympathize with the parents, God forbid anyone! – is not a reason to close the stopping point. By this decision you cause great inconvenience to the citizens. Installing fences is not an option! Closure of major stopping points does not contribute to safety on the roads of the city. You would have to close all the stopping points along the avenues. I beg  to cancel the incompetent decision. ”

The answer to the letter (addressed, to be noted, to the city authorities) came from the administration of the Central District signed by the deputy head V.A. Perednia: “Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich! Your appeal to the editorial staff of the newspaper Sovetskaya Belorussia was considered … The decision to liquidate the stopping point and close the pedestrian crossing  on Pobediteley Avenue in front of the shopping center “Zamok” in Minsk was made by experts in the field of road safety from the traffic police… In connection with the dismantling of the services of the stop pavilion, road signs … and the installation of barrier fences in the  area, the stopping there… became impossible. ”

50cac4e211b0fea16029d88e7ea61836This issue was brought to the surface by a newspaper’s reader. Minsk resident Vladimir Solovey recalled the tragedy that occurred at the crossing of the Pobediteley Avenue near the shopping center “Zamok” (“When all the zebras are black”, “SB”, December 5). More precisely, he recalled not  an accident itself (in which a girl was killed and her brother and grandmother injured), but the consequences. One of the consequences was the elimination of the ill-fated pedestrian crossing.

With all due respect to the departments, the decision looks ambiguous – so it was ambiguously perceived by the citizens. Most of those who discussed it in social networks and forums, did not support the closure of the crossing. They probably did not understand the reason. The solution looks simple: an emergency occurred – we reacted. As a result, cars became “feeling” even freer, pedestrians – even worse: one needs  to take a detour  (approximately a mile). Ironically, the place is near the National Flag Square, the exhibition and shopping and entertainment complexes, so it is widely popular with visitors. And what about the other land crossings across the same avenue? Counting from Nemiga to “Minsk-Arena”, there are ten of them, apart from underground ones. Every one is not  safer than the one that has been  closed. Prospekt Pobediteley has an intense pedestrian flow. On the right, if you look from the center, there is a new museum of the history of the Great Patriotic War and Victory Park, a river and walking paths along it, hotels, sports, shopping and entertainment complexes, to the left – houses, offices, hotels. The reader’s proposal to close all ground crossings sounds ironic, but it hits the point: where is the principal solution to the citywide problem? The solution is not obvious.

Sergey_Nik_Melnik (8) PobeditEven after December 3  there were some more road accidents at pedestrian crossings, not only in the capital. December 20, Orsha: on Lenin Street, a minibus driver knocked down two schoolgirls at the crossing, the girls were hospitalized. December 28, Vitebsk: a mother was injured on Moskovsky Prospekt, who was walking along the transition with two children and a pram, a 6-year-old girl was taken to the hospital. December 26, Minsk: a Mitsubishi hit a woman crossing Selitsky street on a pedestrian crossing. January 12, Minsk: The driver of an Opel Vectra car did not give way to a pedestrian on Russianov Street and hit him, the injured was taken to the hospital with a fracture … Shall we also close these transitions?

It is clear that there is not enough financial support  for the construction of underground crossings wherever it is desirable. But there are other means. In Berlin, there is a need to drive no faster than 30 -50 km per hour and brake before traffic lights every 200 – 300 meters (they are often installed for no reason!) So exhausted drivers often refuse driving cars and choose public transport instead. Consider the sufficient  cost of parking. In Ukraine (where there are also many fatal crashes on transitions), since January 1 of this year a speed limit has been established in populated areas – up to 50 km / h. Shouldn’t we follow the suit?

Some measures are being taken in our country. In Vitebsk reflective shields appeared, which “illuminate” pedestrians at the crossroads. In Minsk, the roadways are narrowed near intersections, forcing drivers to slow down; there is a talk about exclusively paid parking within the inner city ring… It is clear that the authorities have to solve complex, often mutually exclusive tasks: the slower the flow of cars, the more exhaust fumes in the air. Errors occur, it is understandable. But the reader’s letter on a specific occasion marked a common problem. Do the city authorities have a plan, or at least an idea, a concept of turning Minsk into a city for people, not for cars? The issue is to be seriously discussed.

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