Two blocks

I write this with a heavy heart.

There have been four pedestrian deaths on the four-mile stretch of United States Highway 10 between Anoka and Ramsey, Minnesota within the last four months.  The most recent of these took place on Monday, November 26 at approximately 7:40 PM Central Standard Time.  A sixteen-year-old girl was crossing the highway when she was struck by a vehicle where the posted speed limit was 60 miles per hour.

http://www.kare11.com/news/article/999726/391/Pedestrian-struck-killed-by-car-in-Anoka

There is no contesting the fact that this was a tragedy, and my heart broke upon learning of it.  Having owned a home in that area for the two years from 2000 to 2002, I was familiar with the location in question, and it occurred to me that there was a regulated intersection very close by.  With the use of Google Maps, I verified as much, determining that the intersection was approximately two blocks away from the site of the accident.

Would I have taken the short cut in my teens?  Maybe.  Would I have taken it in my thirties?  Again, maybe.  There is no utility in second-guessing something that never took place.  It is also not finally my place to attach sense and sensibility to the tragic loss of life, but I just can’t help thinking… two blocks.  What a difference just two blocks would have made for this young woman, and perhaps for the world.  My heart goes out to the families of everyone involved in these pedestrian deaths.

Traffic safety is a key concern of mine, and I shall be writing more about that on future occasions.  It goes without saying that I hope those posts will come under happier circumstances.

In closing:  whenever I go anywhere to this day, my Mom still says "Be careful," and although I have teased her about that on occasion, the words ring particularly true right now.  Well, I am not your Mom - obviously, but if you are reading this, please... be careful.

Some of the content of this post was obtained from  coverage by our local NBC and CBS affiliates:  http://www.kare11.com/news/article/999810/396/MnDOT-to-study-highway-after-4-pedestrian-deaths-in-4-months and http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/11/27/16-year-old-girl-struck-and-killed-in-anoka/.