HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A new pedestrian safety campaign from Marshall University has a goal to create continued awareness for students and staff who cross streets daily around the Huntington campus.
The university rolled out ‘Heads Up Herd’ this week which reminds pedestrians to keep their heads up and their eyes off of their cell phones. Pedestrians are also reminded to cross streets at crosswalks; always look left, right and left again before crossing; and to make sure they are seen by oncoming drivers.
Marshall University Police Chief Jim Terry says pedestrian safety is always top of mind for his staff, and all members of the Marshall community should follow traffic laws and use the designated areas for crossing the road.
“The number one complaint I receive from people in this area is how members of our community cross streets surrounding the university,” said Terry in a news release.
“It simply is not worth the time you might save by crossing in an unsafe manner to risk getting hurt.”
The launch of the campaign comes on the heels of Marshall partnering with the City of Huntington and the West Virginia Department of Transportation (DOT) in July on plans to enhance pedestrian safety on major thoroughfares near campus.
The three parties announced that the DOT has issued a temporary order reducing the speed limit to 25 mph from 35 mph on 3rd and 5th avenues between 6th and 20th streets.
The City of Huntington has also completed a new crosswalk on 20th Street between 3rd and 5th Avenues. Push buttons on each side trigger beacon lights that flash to alert motorists in both lanes that pedestrians are preparing to enter the crosswalk.
These steps taken come following of a fatal pedestrian accident in November 2021 in which a Marshall University student was struck and killed by an oncoming vehicle in the 1800 block of 3rd Avenue.
Brad D. Smith, president of Marshall, says the pedestrian safety campaign is long overdue on campus.
“Student and staff safety is our priority,” said Smith in a release. “These are basic safety tips that we all may have heard already, but sometimes we need gentle reminders to put those tips into practice. The Marshall family is close-knit and we do not want to have an accident or tragedy that could have been prevented.”
According to Marshall, freshmen attending Week of Welcome were given pedestrian safety tips in their check-in packets and safety flyers are posted in buildings across campus and in dormitories. Digital signage reminding students to make safe choices are running on campus television screens continuously.
A short PowerPoint with pedestrian safety tips was distributed to all faculty on campus, for a short review with students at the start of their classes this semester, a release stated.
In the past week, University Communications and MUPD officers staffed a table on the Memorial Student Center Plaza, handing out reflective, iron-on patches that students can take home or adhere to their bag or backpack on the spot. The patches are an effort to make students crossing streets, especially at night, appear more visible to drivers.
Students who were unable to stop by the table may pick up a patch from the MUPD office at 1801 5th Avenue or the Intercultural Affairs office in Old Main, room 107
For more information on Marshall University’s pedestrian safety campaign or for pedestrian safety tips, visit https://www.marshall.edu/mupd/pedestriansafety.