In March, seven pedestrians were killed by drivers in Connecticut; on April 1, 2024, seven World Central Kitchen workers delivering food in Gaza were killed by the Israeli military. None of these deaths were inevitable. None of these deaths can in good conscience be described as accidental.
Neither of those numbers even begin to capture the whole story. Year-to-date, motorists have killed at least 17 pedestrians in our state; since the beginning of Israel’s latest war against Gaza, at least 203 aid workers have been killed in Palestinian territories — most of those victims worked for a UN agency. WCK and Anera, another aid organization, have paused their operations. Israel says it will investigate, but just like nearly every car crash and nearly every police brutality case, we know the conclusion will be some version of a statement that (1) the victim(s) did something wrong and deserved it, or (2) this was the doing of a rogue individual(s) and they will receive a slap on the wrist and/or made an example out of. And then, nothing changes.
Nothing changes because too many people have accepted this.
What will it take for the average, comfortable person in the United States to reject all of these circumstances? When will folks say that this kind of “normal” is immoral? When will they say the problem wasn’t that Israel did war badly, but that they did war at all? When will they say the problem wasn’t a careless pedestrian or drunk driver, but a whole system designed for efficiency, no matter the cost?
What will motivate you to advocate for a safer, more respectful world?
Maybe this will inspire you.
NORTH BRANFORD
It’s not surprising that someone was killed on Route 80 in North Branford. You might call it Foxon Road, but let’s call it by its true name: Route 80, a roadway maintained by the Connecticut DOT.
The image below is a screenshot of the general area where David Horbal, 65 of North Branford, was killed on March 28, 2024.
You can see that this is a curvy road with no sidewalks. Straightening the road is not the answer; that encourages people to travel faster. They go fast enough already with a 45 MPH posted speed limit.
The hi-vis sign indicates that pedestrians are expected in the area because of a school bus stop. The potential presence of children in the street was not enough to prevent a motorist from killing David around 7:10 AM.
If you live in North Branford or routinely use Route 80, consider what the ingredients were that resulted in David’s preventable death: high speeds on a road with no sidewalks. Let decisionmakers know that we have higher expectations for the way we move around our communities.
Contact North Branford’s Department of Public Works and their town engineer.
Contact the Connecticut DOT.
MERIDEN
The day before David was killed, in Meriden two drivers struck and killed Luis Mulero, 53 of Hartford, around 7:15 or 7:35 PM (depending on which news source you believe) on the northbound side of Route 5/15. You might call it the Berlin Turnpike, but it is Route 5/15 — a roadway maintained by the Connecticut DOT.
From a GoFundMe set up for him, Luis Mulero’s son describes him as: “a very loving person, and a devoted father and grandfather. He loved his grandkids more than anything in this world. Anyone that knew my dad knows how much he loved to joke around, and was a prankster.”
Some reports placed this collision at 1939 North Broad; a later one gave the address as 1966 North Broad, which is the opposite side of the street. If at the latter, the crash happened near a motel where the road is five lanes, rather than four.
The first strike was committed by the driver of a Chevy Silverado pickup truck, which is possibly the make/model tied to the most pedestrian deaths in recent years. The second strike was by the driver of a Hyundai Tucson SUV. Nothing has been said as to why neither driver avoided hitting the pedestrian.
Route 5/15 is multiple lanes of hostile infrastructure, divided by a guard rail. There are no sidewalks. The speed limit is 50 MPH. There are businesses on both sides of the roadway.
In 2021 a pedestrian was killed about 610 feet north of here on the south bound side. About 0.22 miles north of that site, a pedestrian was killed in 2020. That’s three separate fatal pedestrian crashes in a 0.34 mile stretch of road in four years.
Although the news media again chose to parrot the police rather than use critical thinking, we know what kills people on this road: negligent design. It’s a 50 MPH road with no sidewalks.
Please let the decision-makers who are responsible for this crash know that this is unacceptable:
Contact the City of Meriden
Contact the Connecticut DOT.
DANBURY
On March 20, 2024 a driver struck and killed pedestrian Garrett Ritch, 40 of Danbury, at 7:30 PM on the Lake Avenue Extension segment of Route 6/202 — maintained by Connecticut DOT.
According to his obituary: “Garrett loved the outdoors; he worked as a landscaper. He was a great brother and son. Garrett was a person who would always be there for others, he was a kindhearted person who always wished the best for others.”
No other details about the location have been released yet. In 2015, a 17-yr old female pedestrian was killed and a 17-year old male pedestrian injured in another collision on this segment that’s about half a mile long.
This is another stroad. Sometimes there’s sidewalk on one side of the road; sometimes, on neither. One signalized intersection has a marked crosswalk on only one of its legs, even though its the entrance to Western State Connecticut University and across from a supermarket. Another signalized intersection has no marked crosswalks and no walk signal.
The intersection nearest the crash site has marked crosswalks but no walk signal. There are businesses, restaurants, and a hotel in this area with insufficient pedestrian infrastructure. The speed limit is either 30 or 35. There are few street lights on this stretch of road.
The Patch called this the result of a “mishap.” Did robots write that? While that may fulfill the dictionary definition, a “mishap” sounds like what happens when I try reaching for a can on the high shelf at the grocery store. It feels like it minimizes the fact that a human being was killed.
Do you live in Danbury or use this roadway often? Tell decisionmakers that an area where pedestrians are expected should have adequate infrastructure for us!
Contact the City of Danbury’s Director of Public Works/City Engineer: 203-797-4537
Contact the Connecticut DOT.
BRISTOL
Around 6 PM on March 3, 2024, the driver of a Buick Encore SUV struck Albert Sonier on Route 69 at Gridley Street. Albert, who was using an electric wheelchair when hit, died several weeks later. Route 69 is maintained by the Connecticut DOT.
According to his obituary, Al “attended Bristol schools graduating from Bristol Central High School in 1986. Al, as he was known by his family and friends, was a gentle soul who loved sports. He was an avid fan of the Boston Red Sox and the Dallas Cowboys. He also loved to play pool and absolutely loved to fish. Any chance he could get, you could find Al trying to catch that ‘big one’. Al worked for the Bristol Blues Baseball Team as an assistant, a position that he loved. Everyone at Muzzy Field knew Al and he was a proud member of the organization. The team and the fans will miss Al’s presence at the field.”
Some previous crash reports related to same area describe speed limit as 25, others say 30.
From Google Maps screenshot you can see debris in the curb ramp, a sign that there might be substandard maintenance of wheelchair access between street and sidewalk in this area. It’s equally unclear if the sidewalks in this area are consistently level and wide enough for someone using a wheelchair.
According to the Crash Data Repository, Albert was using the marked crosswalk when hit. There are shark’s teeth, which most drivers are unfamiliar with, but no stop signs on Route 69. The area was described as “dark-not lighted”.
It is unacceptable that someone cannot safely roll where he needs to go.
Contact Bristol’s City Engineer: nancylevesque@bristolct.gov
Contact the Connecticut DOT.
WATERBURY
A driver hit and killed Christopher Coleman, 34, of Waterbury, at about 9:45 PM on March 2, 2024. Coleman was found in the roadway of Willow Street and pronounced dead at the hospital.
According to his obituary, Christopher “graduated with a business degree from Wilby High School. He was an avid dancer and a lover of music. He could be found on Willow Street or at a birthday party dancing and having fun. One of Christopher’s greatest accomplishments was being a dad. He loved his daughter Amair immensely and would do anything for her. She was the apple of his eye, and he was proud to be her dad.
Christopher was known to his family as Fester and his friends as Figgs Willow.”
There is a marked crosswalk on only one leg of the intersection, and strangely it’s not near the business.
Since 2017, at least two other pedestrians were injured at this intersection of Willow Street and Woodlawn Terrace. One was a 14-yr old girl hit by the driver of a Chevy Equinox SUV; the other was a 29-yr old man hit by the driver of an unknown vehicle thought to be a Chevy.
Contact Waterbury’s City Engineer to ask that this intersection — and many others in Waterbury — be improved.
HARTFORD
The driver of a Hyundai Palisade SUV struck and killed Omar Johnson, a 41-yr old pedestrian from Hartford, on I-91 South around 8:30 PM on March 19, 2024.
From his obituary: “He was born in Jamaica and migrated here at a young age. Following his graduation from Hartford High, he held many odd jobs. Omar enjoyed walking and taking in the beauty of nature. He leaves to cherish his memories his mother, Verona Davis, siblings: Sarah Antoine, Ashley Antoine and Matthew Antione and a host of other relatives and friends.”
It has not been said if this collision involved Omar standing outside of a disabled vehicle or if there was another reason that he was using the highway.
The WCK workers who were killed yesterday had taken many reasonable precautions: they were operating in “a deconflicted zone in two armored cars branded with the WCK logo and a soft skin vehicle,” they had coordinated their movements with the Israeli military to ensure no case of mistaken identity, they had operated as an organization with a solid reputation. They were leaving a warehouse where the food was stored . . . food that had to be stored at all because of unnecessary violence, and food stored this way because a maritime route for aid delivery needed to be established.
You can take every single precaution possible and still get killed in such a situation because war is designed to kill people; streets and vehicles are not designed to respect the lives of all users, and so, there continue to be fatalities, no matter how the individuals walking or rolling try to protect themselves.
We could tell foreign governments to be more careful in their murdering sprees, tell motorists until we’re literally blue in the face to drive their death machines more carefully. Or, we can remove the dangers in the first place.
Contact Chris Murphy and President Biden and demand they do their job by calling for an immediate and lasting ceasefire, now.
Nearly all of the fatal pedestrian collisions last month occurred on roadways maintained by the Connecticut DOT. Contact the Connecticut DOT and demand that they follow their own Complete Streets directive.
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The first photo is of unsigned, uncommissioned artwork seen in Hartford near a highway ramp
The photo of a car carelessly parked over the sidewalk was taken outside of the Cathedral of Saint Joseph parking lot in Hartford during Holy Week.
The photo of two dumpsters obstructing the sidewalk was taken in downtown Hartford on April 1, 2024. There is not enough space for anyone with a wheelchair, walker, or stroller to fit in between them.