Philadelphia had a rash of recent hit and run ACCIDENTS. Other kinds of pedestrian accidents were more numerous. I had conflicts between cyclists and people in motor vehicles. People with disabilities also had concerns about walking on the streets.

One solution has not really been considered and that is to synchronize and extend the light cycles at intersections.

I go to Montreal often. I’ve been there 10 times. The lights there are timed and sequenced and prioritize pedestrian safety. As a driver, you are much less likely to be stopped at a traffic light, but when you are, you will be waiting for a longer period of time. This creates a traffic flow where cars don’t get as stuck. It creates a flow that keeps traffic moving evenly, allowing you to get through town faster.

Additionally, it gives pedestrians the opportunity to wave down vehicles turning through their intersection and then cross. In Philadelphia, we often have people using walkers, canes, carts, and wheelchairs trying to rush across the intersection. They try to do it the way the cars are intending to return. This causes dangerous situations. Countless accidents and injuries could be avoided by focusing on traffic lights — the one timingMaking them synchronizeand making the light cycle much longer.

In addition, longer lights at intersections make it easier for buses stopping at the corner to pick up and drop off passengers. This also prevents stop-and-go jam what the hell Philadelphia.

Furthermore, the people who have debated safety on our streets have not considered other factors that affect people with disabilities, such as the quiet conundrum of the car. At one point, the cars were almost as loud idling as they were in motion. Hybrid cars and electric cars I’m not like that. It makes it much harder for people to hear the traffic around them. This is especially dangerous for a blind person like me.

However, even the onlookers were suddenly startled by a vehicle turning towards them that they were not aware of until the last second.

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Our short traffic light cycles add to this problem. If people waited at crosswalks and waited at traffic lights for a longer period of time, they would become more aware of their surroundings.

Blind people travel by listening to the direction in which vehicles are moving. At one point, I might not break my stride to cross the street because I could clearly hear all the vehicles and I could hear that I had the light in my favor. However, I have had significant hearing loss in recent years. As the cars got quieter, my hearing became less secure. This meant I could go through several light cycles to cross the street, waiting for the best beep.

” READ MORE: I’m tired of feeling unsafe as a pedestrian and waiting for the city to act | Opinion

Hearing loss exacerbates the issue of pedestrian safety, and when you add distracted driving from cell phones and digital in-dash displays, you’re guaranteed to have difficulties. If the traffic lights were longer, drivers would have to really stop and pay attention. This would increase pedestrian safety.

More and more city ​​dwellers even give up owning a carand like ours the ages of the populationa few extra seconds to cross the street could be a matter of great importance, or even life and death.

I can’t wait to get back to Montreal where it’s easy for me to cross the street without fear or worry. As for Philadelphia, I recommend navigating it with extra caution.

David W. Wannop is a former syndicated journalist and concert promoter based in Philadelphia.