The intersection of Cleveland and Ashland avenues. Alice Ready created a petition to install a flashing pedestrian sign at the crosswalk to inform drivers. (Ava Diaz/ TommieMedia)

St. Thomas junior Alice Ready created a petition in January to raise awareness about the dangerous crosswalk at the intersection of Cleveland and Ashland avenues.

Ready, who lives on Ashland Avenue, posted the request on SeeClickFix, an online communication system on which users can contact local governments about non-emergency issues. She requested an installation of a flashing pedestrian sign at the crosswalk in order to alert drivers.

Ready explained how the crosswalk has always been an issue with her daily commute to campus and she shared a particular instance that sparked her initiative to raise awareness about the area.

“A woman stopped for me while I was in the crosswalk, but the other cars in the opposite lane kept on going and going, not even looking at me and I was even waving at them,” Ready said. “The woman literally had to slam her horn down to get the attention of the other drivers.”

Ready knew that she wasn’t the only one who was upset by this intersection, so she shared the petition from the site on the St. Thomas Class of 2019 Facebook page and sent it to other students who lived in the area.

The post on the Class of 2019 page was liked 20 times and the petition on SeeClickFix was viewed 14 times. Though the numbers seem small, Ready explains that her posts online had higher views than other issues on the petition’s website.

Ready believes that her posts on various media platforms have helped spread awareness in the community.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety states that motorists should treat every corner and intersection as a crosswalk, whether it’s marked or unmarked, and thus must stop for crossing pedestrians. However, many do not follow this regulation. https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/ots/pedestrians-bicycles/Pages/default.aspx

“Cars just aren’t stopping for students, residents and some of the families in the area,” Ready said. “It seems like almost every time I am standing at the crosswalk, I’m standing there with other people who are also waiting and everytime we talk about how we wish people could stop.”

The ground at the Cleveland and Ashland intersection is clearly marked as a crosswalk, but Ready believes a sign could make the crosswalk more visible, making drivers feel obligated to stop.

Ashland resident and junior at St. Thomas, Madeline Dusek expressed her frustration with the intersection.

“I think that the city should for sure put signs up,” Dusek said. “Even though there are markings on the ground, people do not feel like they have to stop and maybe if there is a sign drivers would be more aware and more willing to stop.”

A St. Paul public works administrator commented on Ready’s petition on SeeClickFix explaining that they would not install a flashing sign for the intersection at this time. The administrator suggested hosting an event with ‘Stop For Me,’ an organization that works to improve the safety for people that use St. Paul sidewalks and cross streets.

The ‘Stop For Me,’ a one day event, gathers local volunteers and police officers at the problem site in order to help direct traffic and increase awareness of drivers.

“Volunteers cross the crosswalk and if people don’t stop for you, the cop sees that and the driver will get pulled over,” Ready said. “It helps to raise awareness and educates drivers.”

Though it is not the initial outcome Ready was expecting, she thinks that it is a good alternative that will guide locals toward safety. She plans to organize an event in late spring when the weather is more permitting to potential volunteers.

She plans to follow up with a proposal to install a normal pedestrian sign instead of a flashing one, which is a cheaper alternative.

Ava Diaz can be reached at diaz7981@stthomas.edu