(June 22, 2017) Traffic accidents in downtown Berlin are rare and the police department is hoping to extend its sterling record with a new public awareness campaign for pedestrians.
Police Chief Arnold Downing said about two people each year trip and fall in town crosswalks, resulting in serious injuries.
“The town is unique in itself, but I think they’re having concerns with more pedestrian traffic everywhere across the state,” Downing said. “There’s a lack of knowledge, not only by the drivers themselves, but also by the pedestrians.”
Downing said many of the downtown streets do not meet Maryland State Highway regulations.
“That’s because these were actually horse paths – it was never intended for cars,” he said. “We don’t have a little shoulder on each side [and] the streets themselves are a little bit smaller than regulation roads. Less space means less time to see [pedestrians].”
He said it’s the law to stop for pedestrians in crosswalks.
“We want to push people toward the depressed crosswalks, which are a little bit safer than crossing at the higher sidewalks,” Downing said. “Also, it’s against the law to move diagonally across the street.”
He said pedestrians should always look for posted crosswalks when trying to cross the street. If one is not available, go to the intersection itself.
“Drivers who are more attentive are looking for you in those positions,” Downing said.
When walking with small children, hold their hands and keep them close at your side. Children can be difficult to see, especially in places like Berlin where parked cars line the streets.
“Little people can get lost behind the bigger vehicles and that’s a concern,” he said. “If they’re in the crosswalk, drivers are looking for people in these locations.”
Increased cellphone use has also created issues, Downing said.
“People lose a little bit of themselves while they’re doing that, so we want a little bit of care,” he said. “You’ll actually see people looking at the Town of Berlin website while they’re trying to find something [while crossing the street].”
Most town events throughout the summer include partial road closures downtown. That can mean less available space on the sidewalks. Sandwich board signs also take up walking space.
“If you’re going to step out into the road because you can’t use the sidewalk you have to be very careful, because [motorists] are not expecting that,” Downing said.
He said the awareness campaign would essentially consist of police talking to people one-on-one.
“Sometimes if you just go ahead and say it out loud, a lot of the people will respond,” Downing said. “Pedestrian traffic is a concern in the town of Berlin. The town has over 50-plus vehicles and if we can go ahead and start with those and get it in their mindset to drive a little bit more defensively and let them know downtown Berlin has a lot of pedestrian traffic we have to be careful of, then that’s a good start.”
Use sidewalks and posted crosswalks whenever possible. If there is not a crosswalk, cross at the intersection in an area where cars can clearly see you. Keep children close, and always look both ways before crossing a street.
If you’re behind the wheel, stay alert and slow down when approaching crosswalks.
Downing said the town has had no serious accidents in some time and accidents are down overall in the state during the last decade. But, incidents statewide and in nearby Ocean City were up last year, he said.
“The law says you are supposed to stop for anyone in the crosswalk,” Downing said. “We think it should be viewed as a four-way stop, where everybody looks at each other and acknowledges you’re there. If you’re looking at the driver and they don’t recognize you and you don’t recognize them, be careful going across the street. And if you don’t have time to get across the street all the way without the vehicle stopping, don’t start.”
He said the town intends to keep its record clean.
“Oh definitely,” he said. “Zero is the whole state target. That’s a very ambitious goal, but if you don’t approach it that way you’re going to have a lot of trouble.”
He added the intersection of Route 50 near Stephen Decatur High School and the new Royal Farms and Arby’s stores was another area of concern. Downing said the school and State Highway officials supported a safety crosswalk there. Funding, however, is an issue and discussions were ongoing, he said.
“The highway is where we’ve always had our serious accidents – we’ve had three fatalities,” he said. “Whenever a certain intersection or certain area has more prevalent accidents, we come back and study it, share our data with State Highway, and decide if we need to change something.”
Police Chief Arnold Downing said about two people each year trip and fall in town crosswalks, resulting in serious injuries.
“The town is unique in itself, but I think they’re having concerns with more pedestrian traffic everywhere across the state,” Downing said. “There’s a lack of knowledge, not only by the drivers themselves, but also by the pedestrians.”
Downing said many of the downtown streets do not meet Maryland State Highway regulations.
“That’s because these were actually horse paths – it was never intended for cars,” he said. “We don’t have a little shoulder on each side [and] the streets themselves are a little bit smaller than regulation roads. Less space means less time to see [pedestrians].”
He said it’s the law to stop for pedestrians in crosswalks.
“We want to push people toward the depressed crosswalks, which are a little bit safer than crossing at the higher sidewalks,” Downing said. “Also, it’s against the law to move diagonally across the street.”
He said pedestrians should always look for posted crosswalks when trying to cross the street. If one is not available, go to the intersection itself.
“Drivers who are more attentive are looking for you in those positions,” Downing said.
When walking with small children, hold their hands and keep them close at your side. Children can be difficult to see, especially in places like Berlin where parked cars line the streets.
“Little people can get lost behind the bigger vehicles and that’s a concern,” he said. “If they’re in the crosswalk, drivers are looking for people in these locations.”
Increased cellphone use has also created issues, Downing said.
“People lose a little bit of themselves while they’re doing that, so we want a little bit of care,” he said. “You’ll actually see people looking at the Town of Berlin website while they’re trying to find something [while crossing the street].”
Most town events throughout the summer include partial road closures downtown. That can mean less available space on the sidewalks. Sandwich board signs also take up walking space.
“If you’re going to step out into the road because you can’t use the sidewalk you have to be very careful, because [motorists] are not expecting that,” Downing said.
He said the awareness campaign would essentially consist of police talking to people one-on-one.
“Sometimes if you just go ahead and say it out loud, a lot of the people will respond,” Downing said. “Pedestrian traffic is a concern in the town of Berlin. The town has over 50-plus vehicles and if we can go ahead and start with those and get it in their mindset to drive a little bit more defensively and let them know downtown Berlin has a lot of pedestrian traffic we have to be careful of, then that’s a good start.”
Use sidewalks and posted crosswalks whenever possible. If there is not a crosswalk, cross at the intersection in an area where cars can clearly see you. Keep children close, and always look both ways before crossing a street.
If you’re behind the wheel, stay alert and slow down when approaching crosswalks.
Downing said the town has had no serious accidents in some time and accidents are down overall in the state during the last decade. But, incidents statewide and in nearby Ocean City were up last year, he said.
“The law says you are supposed to stop for anyone in the crosswalk,” Downing said. “We think it should be viewed as a four-way stop, where everybody looks at each other and acknowledges you’re there. If you’re looking at the driver and they don’t recognize you and you don’t recognize them, be careful going across the street. And if you don’t have time to get across the street all the way without the vehicle stopping, don’t start.”
He said the town intends to keep its record clean.
“Oh definitely,” he said. “Zero is the whole state target. That’s a very ambitious goal, but if you don’t approach it that way you’re going to have a lot of trouble.”
He added the intersection of Route 50 near Stephen Decatur High School and the new Royal Farms and Arby’s stores was another area of concern. Downing said the school and State Highway officials supported a safety crosswalk there. Funding, however, is an issue and discussions were ongoing, he said.
“The highway is where we’ve always had our serious accidents – we’ve had three fatalities,” he said. “Whenever a certain intersection or certain area has more prevalent accidents, we come back and study it, share our data with State Highway, and decide if we need to change something.”