Car-Free: It’s Been an Incidental Sort of Week
The week was full of incidents and accidents. Only one involved me directly, though.
During last week’s DownEast Cyclist Club meeting, I heard that one of the bicyclists that routinely ride the Jacksonville Rails-to-Trails multi-use path had been involved in a nasty crash along the fenced area of Highway 24/Lejeune Blvd near the Camp Lejeune Main Gate. The culprit in the bicyclist’s fall? A tattered “welcome” sign fashioned from a bed-sheet. The sheet had been ripped free of three corners and was flapping into the path. It snagged the cyclist’s bicycle and pulled her to the ground. The group was nearly certain she’d broken a collar bone, but apparently it was just a bad bruise. If only Camp Lejeune had been warned about the dangers of these sheets and signs to bicyclists and pedestrians. Oh, that’s RIGHT! They were. And Camp Lejeune’s Deputy Safety Manager for Marine Corps Base dismissed the concern as “not their responsibility.”
Late last week, Mr. Richard Sparks was killed when he was hit by a car while attempting to cross Highway 17/Marine Blvd near the intersection with Western Blvd. Mr. Sparks was visiting Jacksonville to watch his son graduate from a Marine Corps training. It was late (about 10 o’clock P.M.) and there is no marked crosswalk at the intersection. The Jacksonville Police Department and Onslow County’s District Attorney Dewey Hudson will not press charges against the driver, Mr. Charles Adams. This is the second pedestrian death in 2009 in Jacksonville (Ms. Talissa Hatchell was killed in February) and Mr. Hudson had some pretty tough words for the City of Jacksonville.
How many people have to die before the city protects pedestrians?
Jacksonville Daily News writer Lindell Kay blogged about the accident. He noted that Mr. Sparks had previously spoke to family about being concerned about the safety of crossing Highway 17/Marine Blvd, but attempted to do so, anyway. Mr. Mike McHugh, an employee of the Jacksonville Daily News, made an interesting recommendation to the City in a comment:
The city should consider constructing pedestrian “bridges” enclosed with chain linked fencing above the roadway, high enough to allow trucks and other tall vehicles to pass below.
These walk ways are common in larger cities such as Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York.
The reason this recommendation is interesting is that a project of such magnitude would be pretty darned expensive, especially considering that sidewalks would have to be constructed leading to these pedestrian overpasses. Mr. McHugh is known for his “fiscal conservatism”, is even a member of the Daily News’ editorial staff and has spoken out against the Rails-to-Trails and the pedestrian bridge which crosses Highway 24/Lejeune Blvd.
The City of Jacksonville and the State of North Carolina are stuck in a fight over who has jurisdiction over the streets in this City. Unfortunately for pedestrians, this fight is prohibiting anyone from doing anything. So, like Mr. Hudson, I have to ask, how many people have to die before someone (anyone!) does something?
It was 2,100 miles and 8 months in the making, but I had my first bicycle crash this week.
It was raining pretty hard and had been for a while. The roads were wet and puddles lined the edges of Stone Street aboard Camp Lejeune. Camp Lejeune isn’t known for its road maintenance (Really, where in NC is?) and the edges of most roads are crumbling and have large cracks. I must have been paying too much attention to traffic and not enough to the road’s edge and caught a crack in the pavement. I was brought down, pretty hard, but didn’t have any real damage. A scraped up left knee and some bruises. Fortunately, I was on my way home and didn’t have to work a whole day feeling beaten up. The bicycle is fine, too, just some scratched paint and I had to realign the chain.
I guess the point to all this is: I’m glad the week is over.
April 23rd, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Tom:
I happen to like the bike trail and the bridge that spans Highway 24 though I have not had an opportunity to ride the trail or cross the bridge. (that’s something on my Onslow County bucket list)
I lived for 21 years in Washington D.C. where we had a Rails-To-Trails bike path from Georgetown to Silver Spring. Perhaps you rode on this old C&O RR route.
It is beautiful and allows both citizens and visitors of the Nation’s Capital an opportunity to see DC from a more natural perspective.
That trail adds to the quality of life one affords by living inside the Beltway.
I believe the current bike trail in Jacksonville could do the same if the stigma of this path crossing through less desirable areas of Jville could be overcome and could be connected to other trails present and proposed offering the rider or walker miles of safe, scenic travel.
As for the pedestrian bridge, I believe it is the role of the town
government to see to it that its citizens and visitors are safely protected. Right now, it is dangerous to cross Western Blvd and many other streets in Jacksonville.
Pedestrian bridges are not an instrument that should be considered a utility favored by liberals or conservatives but rather public property that serves all.
April 23rd, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Mr. McHugh,
Thanks for coming by and commenting.
I haven’t ridden the bicycle trails in Washington, D.C., though I’ve heard that they’re quite nice. Jacksonville’s trails can be just as nice. The “less desirable areas” that you seem to think our trail goes through aren’t really all that dangerous. I’ve ridden through the area during all times of day and night and have had no problems.
I agree that its the city government’s role to protect its citizens.
In this instance, though, the City has done all it can to ask the NC DOT to provide some funding for pedestrian projects along Western Blvd, Hwy 17/Marine Blvd and Hwy 24/Lejeune Blvd.
It is the state which has refused to keep Jacksonville’s residents safe.
I’m working on a post with more information on how you can help make Jacksonville a safer community. I hope to have it up over the weekend.
Thank you, again, for visiting and commenting. I hope you stick around and continue to participate.