We-Ha.com welcomes Letters to the Editor from the public, including endorsements. Letters submitted by political candidates will be considered for publication up to 14 days prior to an election and most will be published within 48 hours of receipt. Letters that contain personal attacks or include profanity of any type will not be published. Rebuttals to letters should be submitted as a separate document, and commenting on letters will no longer be permitted. Please provide your full name and town, as well as your phone number at the end of the letter. Phone numbers will not be published but are required in case verification is needed. Please submit letters to [email protected]

To the Editor:

Based on the recurring number of pedestrian fatalities in West Hartford, the town’s Vision Zero Safety Plan is simply not working. I repeat, not working. Despite its 154-page length and slick presentation, the plan virtually neglects the most important safety element of all, driver and pedestrian/cyclist education and awareness. My wife was hit on her bike while cycling on Mountain Road and both of us have experienced recurring near misses while cycling in town. As a grandparent, I am also particularly concerned about the safety of young children and adolescents riding their bikes in town.

The town can follow the latest guidelines for street, intersection, and sidewalk design but these do little to address the deeper underlying problem of speeding, distracted driving, running red lights, and errant pedestrian and cyclist behavior. What’s needed right now is a multipronged, town-wide public education program to educate drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists on traffic laws, safety, and personal responsibility. This is vaguely on the Vision Zero roadmap for some future date, but this needs to happen now, not in 2026 or later. A series of educational seminars, workshops, mailings, and video presentations are needed to educate the public on these issues.

How many drivers in town know about and respect the three-foot bicycle passing distance rule? How many know that they can cross a solid yellow double line to pass a cyclist or that they must wait behind a cyclist until it is safe to pass. When drivers get behind the wheel of a car, too many treat bicyclists as second-class citizens who belong on the sidewalks, not on the roads. I’ve also seen little or no enforcement by the police of driver traffic violations related to cyclists.

Without some punitive deterrent, drivers will simply continue following their aggressive or irresponsible driving habits. As part of a public education campaign, the town should also make low-cost reflective bands, sashes, and lights available to those that walk or cycle at night. For the cost of a $1 reflector or $3 light, lives could be saved.

Sherman Schlar
West Hartford