D.C. tries to stem traffic fatalities

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - District officials are trying to reduce the number of pedestrians being hit by cars, in response to a sharp rise in those incidents.

D.C. Councilwoman Mary Cheh, Ward 3, wants to drastically increase the fines for committing traffic violations, and the police are warning pedestrians and drivers alike to obey the city’s laws.

One provision would swell the fine for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk to $500 from the current $50 sanction, Cheh said. However, she said she has not finalized her legislation, which she intends to introduce next week.

This year, 26 pedestrians have been fatally struck by vehicles in the District, compared with 17 a year ago. The figure contrasts sharply with a recent report from the Brookings Institute that rates D.C. as the country’s top walkable major city.

“We need to ratchet up the fines people face,” Cheh told The Examiner. “We need that $500 penalty to get the attention of motorists. I think it will concentrate the mind wonderfully. People will say, ‘Whoa $500, I better stop.’ ”

Cheh’s proposal would give the District the stiffest penalty in the region for failure to yield. In Arlington, which has areas such as Ballston designed for high pedestrian traffic, the penalty is $30. In Montgomery County, where Executive Ike Leggett just announced a $5 million initiative to improve pedestrian safety, the penalty is $80.

D.C. officers spent Thursday at several busy intersections, such as Idaho and Wisconsin avenues in Northwest, handing out warnings to pedestrians, cyclists and motorists who ran afoul of city traffic laws. The enforcement blitz was one of many the Metropolitan Police Department has conducted as the pedestrian fatality rate has risen.

Bicyclists face $25 fines for transgressions including riding in the wrong direction, running red lights and riding at night without a light. Pedestrian violations, such as crossing against the traffic signal, carry $20 fines.

“Walking is one of the best ways to get around our city, and I want our pedestrians to know it's safe to cross the street,” D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty said.

jrogalsky@dcexaminer.com

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