Attempting to visit the bookstore, café or to get to the parking garage should not have to be a potentially life-threatening situation.
Apparently, it has become that serious.
People have joked about it forever, and there’s even a facebook group titled “I’m one of those drivers that don’t stop for pedestrians crossing the street towards the Caf.”
Unfortunately, these kinds of drivers are compromising the safety of our fellow students.
Friday night, a FAMU student attempting to cross the street in front of Paddyfote was hit by a car.
While the student did not sustain life-threatening injuries, he did have to go to the hospital.
Florida Statute 316.130 states, “…The driver of a vehicle must yield the right of way, slowing or stopping if necessary, to pedestrians crossing within a crosswalk…”
Unfortunately, drivers on campus seem to think that as long as the pedestrian is not practically sitting on their bumper, they can just coast right over the crosswalk.
The worried look on the faces of people attempting to cross the street clearly illustrates their dilemma: “Is getting this book for my math class really worth risking my life?”
Drivers: Those tedious ten seconds spent sitting at the crosswalk aren’t going to make or break your day.
Chances are that if you’re in that big of a rush, you were probably already late to begin with, so try waking up earlier next time.