Vision Zero and a Fleeting Rainbow in Everyday Ramblings

I looked at this tag a few weeks ago on one of three new trees in my local park and then thought I’ll remember that…but of course I didn’t. I got home and was thinking, a cherry? So I went back and took a picture of the tag. There are tags on four new trees over at the track as well. One I know is a white oak but I need to look at the others.

Did you know that in the U.S. pedestrian deaths are up 50% over the last 10 years? Cars killed 6,227 people walking in 2018. Not only are the families of those killed (we are not even talking injured) affected but think of all those drivers who are living with this.

The main cause the scientists say is no, not distraction, and of course that is an issue, but the amazing rise in bigger vehicles since the recession. SUVs and trucks.

I saw a guy with a phone ride up to a nice black SUV in one of these car share programs on a scooter, pick the scooter up and put it in the back seat and then drive away a couple of days ago. He was wearing sports type boxer shorts and a hoodie and was (this is what I found interesting) dirty. He looked like he had been sleeping rough.

On Monday when I was coming home from class I was crossing a downtown street with the light in a crosswalk and a young guy in a sedan (thank goodness) was hesitating talking to his companion and turned left right smack in the middle of the intersection.

I jumped out of the way. That was way too close for comfort. It was kind of sort of getting onto dusk but he literally did not see me.

The reason I bring this up is because our amazing receptionist at work was almost hit in exactly the same circumstances back in June at a problematic local intersection that I have mentioned before. She was raving about traffic enforcement and cameras when she got back and because I value her well being and my own (I use the same intersection twice most days as a pedestrian) I found a number to call for the city department of transportation and left a message with my concerns.

Yesterday in the middle of a crazy busy day, an almost breathless amount of work was coming in, a lovely woman called me back. She said they were backlogged.

Um yeah, almost two months.

Someone transcribes the complaint calls and so she hadn’t heard my original message but she said they were aware that this was a problematic corner.

But then she told me something I had no idea of. The only way to get a traffic camera installed is to go through our state legislature! Which is not in session now.

We have all these unfilled positions for police officers and there are not enough people in any way shape or form to do enforcement. She told me it is getting truly bad downtown and she says our only recourse is to be super-aware and defensive as a pedestrian.

I wish the drivers had that responsibility too. She did tell me that a nearby affluent city has installed cameras on almost all their major intersections and that accidents and injuries have dropped precipitously.

I wonder if we could make a fake camera and sign, sort of as a guerilla pedestrian move?

We do have a Vision Zero plan here to cut back on pedestrian and bike injuries so there are people who care about this out there.

In other news my disposal is leaking and I can’t use my kitchen sink until it gets fixed. Frustrating!

And this morning according to a plan I hatched over the weekend and carried out much to my astonishment because I woke up tired after the crazy busy day yesterday I went over to trot around the track at sunrise.

And the same guy that was there on the east facing bench was back and what I realized what he was doing was waiting for and taking a picture of the sunrise, then a little Tai Chi and then a standing meditation.

At one point I looked up at the fading moon and where he was looking and there was a fleeting gorgeous rainbow over the hill behind us.

It was gone by my next lap.

Thank you Mr. Sunrise Meditator for being present for this fleeting bit of joy.

Last updated August 21, 2019