Description
The city just changed the pedestrian crossing at this intersection so cars get a green light at the same time pedestrians get a walk signal.
This is very dangerous as this is a very busy intersection with cars speeding down Essex Street to catch the green light. Please change it back to where pedestrians get a dedicated walk signal.
You can't have pedestrians (a lot of kids cross here) trying to compete with cars. Again its crazy having the walk signal and the green light for cars at the same time.
also asked...
Q. What is the type of signal that is not working?
A. Walk
A. Walk
Q. Please describe any other information related to the malfunction/damage
A. Walk Light and Green light for cars at the same time
A. Walk Light and Green light for cars at the same time
21 Comments
City of Salem (Verified Official)
Electrical Department (Verified Official)
Steven Gallagher (Registered User)
Hi John,
Regardless of the law you cant have the walk signal and the green light for cars at the same time. I live on Essex Street and cars speed down Essex to take the left. Someone is going to be hit with the car having a green light at the same time as the pedestrian. I have not idea why the city would make an intersection more dangerous. You can add ADA compliance without changing the pedestrians having a dedicated walk signal. How can I get this changed back?
Thanks,
Steven
mhand (Registered User)
Laws do not matter if I get hit by a car because motorists in this area have been conditioned to turn at the intersection without yielding. The green light has always meant there's no pedestrian traffic. I understand there are signs but think about the next time you drive down the road do you notice new signs continually are you scanning for new information. Or are you just kind of on autopilot driving along like you normally do.
For such a major change there should be bigger sign in even if temporary until people are conditioned to actually look for pedestrians at that intersection. The vast majority of all intersections I've come to in Eastern Massachusetts or a complete stop for pedestrians. I don't particularly like all stop for pedestrian. But as a pedestrian Annie motorist I've been conditioned to this.
I highly recommend some temporary orange construction signs denoting the change. There was all kinds of signage when they switched over the intersection to a roundabout last year. And people should be able to just follow the lines on the road right? Please be considerate to those of us who walk in this area. Do not preach about laws. If laws protected me from getting hit I wouldn't need car insurance. And as a pedestrian at this intersection I can't see the oncoming traffic has a green light now. there was no warning for me as The pedestrian that somebody May forgot to yield to me in the crosswalk because they now have a green light.
I am posting this after somebody almost hit me in the crosswalk while I had the walk and they had a green. And we both commiserated over this change. We were both very confused.
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
NorthShoreJewel (Registered User)
Sorry, but have you all ever been to a city other than Salem? I travel for work a lot and in any major city, this is exactly the case and the right thing to do. Go to Boston, NY, even Merrimack, Burlington, Denver, San Francisco, Portland ME, etc...they have all gone to this. Any city that understands traffic and that most of the population drives, does not walk everywhere, especially to a tourist-type place like Salem, has done this. Even Beverly and Newburyport has started doing this. Bravo to Salem for finally starting to make wise traffic decisions. Salem needs to become more traffic-friendly, not just catering to pedestrians, especially given there are so few main arteries in and out of the city. If a walking city like Boston can do it, so can Salem. Their intersections are bigger, with more cars and more pedestrians. It has always been crazy for people who actually drive that there is always this timed extra 30 seconds to a minute just for a pedestrian signal, when often times there is not anyone even there. Or, you have people who just cross anyway when they see a chance....or the best one, where you have people push for the signal and then cross anyway, halting all traffic in every direction for no reason!! Before you start to say 'oh, 30 seconds to a minute is not much'....then you do not understand traffic logistics and have not driven every day during rush hours where it backs up for miles. Again, often for no reason at all. And once Again, if all the other major (and not-so-major cities) can do it, so can Salem. What this is doing is putting the situation into peoples' own best judgment, and crossing when it makes sense. Which, again, is what people seem to do anyway all over the place in Salem. Buttons pushed, noone anywhere to be found, having already crossed when it made sense to do so. Now, they will at least have a pedestrian light telling them to go. How is that any different than this change? I walk around Salem too and if I am going to cross, I cross at a crosswalk and when it makes sense to do so. If I see traffic coming, I do not cross. If I do, I wait. Simple. And if I ever feel the need to actually hit the button, I actually wait until it is my turn to cross!
Caveat to all this (before the flaming begins)...it needs to make sense. First, the walk signals should always go in line with the traffic, not against. I will say that these options usually work best when it is a right turn only situation, not a left like Essex is off of North. That can be trickier. However, that whole area needs to be policed better, meaning actually having officers there to ticket people who love to suddenly cut right to go straight after having been in a left-turn only lane to try and pass everyone, and to ticket people who speed/run that left turn light. I also agree with mhand, in that there should be PLENTY of signage/warnings just like they do in Boston and Portland ME. Just doing it out of nowhere could/is obviously dangerous. That intersection does need to be better policed though...if Salem wants to note that the law is our protection, then that needs to be accompanied by law enforcement.
Jwikstro (Registered User)
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
cwatson-felt (Registered User)
Electrical Department (Verified Official)
Steven Gallagher (Registered User)
Steven Gallagher (Registered User)
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
Electrical Department (Verified Official)
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
This is a case where the speed of traffic movement is being prioritized over pedestrian safety. It would certainly be safer for pedestrians if all vehicle traffic were halted during the pedestrian crossing cycle.
I strongly disagree with this decision to prioritize vehicle traffic. Encouraging faster-moving traffic in downtown Salem is a bad idea, especially where tourists are very numerous and unaware of the risks.
Steven Gallagher (Registered User)
Jason (Registered User)
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
Electrical Department (Verified Official)
l91 (Registered User)
Hello, please set this back to where it was, with the 3-4 seconds lead time. People on this site are in the vast minority, and seem to think that Salem is a city of pedestrians...not DRIVERS. Whenever you give people a platform to open their mouths and sound off, that is what you get...people just complaining all the time. There are, what, 5 complainers on here? You never hear from those that are HAPPY, just those that are mad. Thusly, you have us on here now because we saw progress halted by a few people who walk around....we hope the electrical dept will keep in mind that it is the drivers that are the majority, not the complaining walkers on here who seem to think they are the only people living in the city.
If you want progress, you need to move forward, and as already noted, this type of setup has already become the norm across cities around the country. Boston, everything is set up like this. If everyone else can do it, so can Salem. Change is hard, but you can do it. Please keep moving forward, Electrical Dept, to keep Salem progressing.
Peter Crowley (Registered User)
With this experience of being spoiled rotten, it is no wonder that some drivers feel it is terribly unfair that pedestrians might have exclusive access to crosswalks for an entire 30 seconds. It's called "entitlement".