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To the Editor:

I’m in total agreement with your sentiments [Letter: Be the Tortoise, July 9, 2025] on slowing down as countless scientific studies have shown that slower traffic speeds reduce impact forces when a car collides with a pedestrian or cyclist. This change alone saves lives. But in our fast-paced, caffeine-fueled culture here in Connecticut, I’m not sure how many speeding and distracted drivers will change their driving habits and slow down just because it’s the right thing to do.

It is widely acknowledged that there are three main components to reducing traffic accidents and fatalities: 1) Engineering, 2) Enforcement, 3) Education. The town of West Hartford has invested heavily in fixing this problem with the first component, (road) Engineering, and this very visible improvement is having a strong positive effect.

Despite the fact that we are in the midst of a public safety crisis, however, the town has spent far, far less on addressing Items 2 and 3: Enforcement and Education. If I go look at the Vision Zero area on the town’s website www.westhartfordct.gov/ it is heavily weighted towards traffic engineering, road safety audits, quick build projects, etc. But where is the Educational information that drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists need to drive, walk, and pedal more safely around town? Where is the section that talks about the laws in Connecticut regarding drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists? The answer: this important and practical information is nowhere to be found.

In this age of YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, any 13-year-old with a smartphone can produce short, snappy educational videos that are far more effective in educating and informing the community than all the dry boring technical information on the town’s Vision Zero web page. Despite the fact that we see drivers here speeding and running red lights all the time, have the West Hartford Police stepped up their enforcement efforts? Are they following the same old playbook or have they tried any creative solutions to solve this problem?

Engineering and weak, half-hearted public safety messaging alone will not pull us out of this public safety crisis. Just as it did for the recent West Hartford Center redesign, the town needs to spend real money and hire outside professional experts to fix these key Enforcement and Education issues.

Sherman Schlar
West Hartford