As The University of Alabama becomes more densely populated than ever due to record-breaking enrollment this year, traffic safety is becoming a concern for pedestrians across campus.
Alabama is a car-dependent school, being attended largely by commuters. According to US News, only 28% of last year’s 33,345 undergraduate students lived on campus, so the rest, over 24,000 students, have to find their own modes of transit to get to class…
Some studies have found that concerns about distracted pedestrians, while not unfounded, are overblown. “The message around distracted pedestrians being a danger to themselves is really taking away from serious safety measures,” Ben Fried, the communications director for public transit foundation TransitCenter, said in an interview with the New York Times.
A study of pedestrians at the University of Alabama at Birmingham found that 52.9% of them walked through intersections while using their phones. While the study found that distracted pedestrians were actually more likely to check both ways and cross when signaled, the researchers acknowledged that their methods were crude and that “previous research conducted within virtual reality scenarios, where risks can ethically be elevated for scientific purposes, suggest distracted walking does lead to safety risks.”
Another study showed only 5-10% of crashes were caused by distracted pedestrians, minimal in comparison to the risks of walking or driving intoxicated.
“We can all agree that too many pedestrians die on our streets, but a misplaced focus on distracted walking will hamper our efforts to save lives and improve safety for all users,” Rutgers public policy professor Kelcie Ralph said in the study.