“Safety Pays in Every Way”. Or so it says in The Accident Prevention Signs, Labels and Identification Products Booklet.
Math major, Jose DeJesus, would beg to differ. “I made $50 in two minutes,” he boasted, as he recounted his recent run-in – literally - with a car on the morning of Monday, October 5, at approximately 8:55 AM, as he was making his way back from his residence at 424 Main Street to campus to grab a quick bite to eat.
DeJesus admits that he sped up to pass in front of a gray jeep that was pulling out of a driveway, saying it did not look as if the car was going to make an attempt to exit. The driver, described as being in his early 30s, exited the vehicle after the incident and asked the UC student if he was alright.
The UC senior did not appear too shaken. “My first thought was…****, I’m not going to eat before class. My second thought…where’s my cell phone?”
Upon noticing the misplaced chain on the bike, the driver gave DeJesus $50 and a ride back to campus. De Jesus, who walked away unharmed, laughed as he recounted the incident: “It was pretty comical.”Although this may not seem like the most serious of accidents, one must ask: Does this point to a more pressing issue on campus, in terms of bike and pedestrian safety on and near Main Street?
This incident is particularly pertinent, for the UC Bike Share, a program which was created last year by recent graduate, Laura Ng, has become widely popular on campus. News of the incident reached the heads of the Bike Share program – Ray Clarke and Jay Fetterolf – a day or two after it happened.
Fetterolf, a sophomore who helps with bookkeeping and registration of the program, spoke of the accident saying, “We were surprised…this is one of the first ones we’ve heard about.”
Kim Taylor, Director of Campus Safety, was also surprised to hear of the incident. When asked about what Campus Safety specifically has been doing to ensure safety is upheld, she spoke of the recent decision to decrease the speed limit on Main Street from 35 MPH to 30 MPH. The borough of Collegeville made this request to PennDOT numerous times before it was finally accepted. (The borough must go through PennDOT because Main Street is a state road.) “We can’t just make the decision,” Taylor said. “We’re part of the bigger picture. Lots of voices have to be heard.”
Additionally, Taylor also spoke of efforts to make the crosswalks stand out more to cars passing by campus. This should give Eva Bramesco and others who live on Main Street some piece of mind.
Bramesco, a Sophomore International Relations and Spanish double major, lives in Todd and has to cross Main Street every day. She shares her own comical musings as a pedestrian.. “We do joke sometimes that, at some point this year, we’ll eventually be hit. It’ll stop being funny once it actually happens.”
While Jose DeJesus regards his accident as more laughable than anything else, it is important to be aware of the possible perils of walking or cycling near main roads.
Ray Clarke, a Junior Economics major who serves as the mechanical go-to-guy for UC Bike Share, offers a piece of advice: “Treat a car as hostile….be completely cautious.”
Heed his warning. There are much safer ways to make that $50.
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