Boulevard safety
is top priority

By Lauren Fritsky
Times Staff Writer

In the last year, Catholic education, fire prevention and recycling have been the focus of several advertising campaigns in the city.
Last week, Roosevelt Boulevard joined that list.
No official kickoff launched "Cross with Care, Drive Aware," a public education campaign developed by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the Philadelphia Department of Streets.
The initiative aims to keep the issue of safety alive for residents who drive and walk the Boulevard as a task force continues to brainstorm ways to improve the dangerous 12-lane highway.
"The improvements themselves aren’t going to fix the problem," said Elise Turner, communications specialist for DVRPC. "Residents now have a way they can take certain steps."
The ads, accompanied by an orange and blue logo featuring the profiles of a pedestrian and a car, warn pedestrians to watch traffic signals and always cross at marked crosswalks or intersections and drivers to obey the speed limit and to wear seat belts. DVRPC is distributing fliers and ads to local libraries, police districts and other public places and securing interior signs to SEPTA buses serving the Boulevard.
"It’s nice that DVRPC could put together something to be out quickly," said Jenny Robinson, safety spokeswoman for PennDOT. "I think it will help."
Injury and death continue to plague the Boulevard. Several people were seriously injured in a July 26 collision involving a private ambulance and a passenger vehicle at the intersection of Seventh Street in Olney.
Mabel Rose Taylor, who in November 2006 was hit by a red-light runner who struck and killed her 7-year-old great-grandson at the Boulevard and Lott Street, died of her injuries in March.
In January, one man died in a two-car crash at the intersection of Rising Sun Avenue.
The safety campaign precedes a Roosevelt Boulevard safety study that the DVRPC plans to release later this month. The report will recommend specific safety improvements and guide future projects.
A larger campaign using part of the $3.2 million secured by U.S. Rep. Allyson Y. Schwartz (D-13th dist.) to support public education efforts and safety improvements along the Boulevard is planned for 2008. Some improvements that will begin that year include the installation of pedestrian countdown timers and the enhancement of crosswalk pavement markings at all 50 signalized intersections of the roadway.
In the interim, red-light cameras continue to monitor eight intersections. The probationary period for the newly installed cameras at Southampton and Welsh roads and Rhawn, Levick and Mascher streets ended Sunday.
State Rep. George Kenney (R-170th dist.) hopes to soon pass legislation that would allow the installation of speed cameras at several intersections along the Boulevard. ••
Reporter Lauren Fritsky can be reached at 215-354-3038 or lfritsky@phillynews.com