Let's save some lives, Orlando

     A recent Orlando Sentinel delivered news of more misery that could've been avoided.  One life lost, two more families that'll never forget Saturday morning.  My fear, however, is that many in our community have frozen in their tracks with no clue as to how this problem can be solved.  Others may be stumped, but here's my idea:  let's enforce our pedestrian traffic laws and save some lives, Orlando.

     Drive down nearly any street in town, and you'll see them- those making personal choices to disobey the law and cross outside of our sidewalks.  It doesn't matter if the nearest one is 20 or 200 feet away- the stream of single adults, children, mothers with strollers and young folks who have made crossing against traffic a sick, deadly game that has no winners.

     Saturday saw a 24-year-old lady leave a bar and illegally cross S.R. 50 into the path of a vehicle and die at the scene.  Her family is surely devastated, and one can expect the 37-year-old lady whose vehicle killed her is faring no better.  In January, it was an 85-year-old man killed trying to cross the Beachline.  In October, a 76-year-old lady killed as she ran in front of a Lincoln Navigator.  November found an 81-year-old lady killed as she stepped into the path of a truck.

     My cursory research shows no less than 17 local pedestrian deaths since last September- ages 11-85.  This includes the sorrowful day just prior to Christmas, when two Oviedo sisters (ages 11 and 17) walking against traffic and outside any sidewalk died grisly deaths after being hit by two separate vehicles.

     It's time we do something.  I've seen The Sentinel run stories about the obese, including one blaming their problems on The City Beautiful's lack of sidewalks.  Folks are heavy because the supply of sidewalks around here doesn't meet their demand.  Hard to find much truth in that, though- as few people of any size choose to use the sidewalks we have.

     Prom time will be here before we know it, too- and many teens will roll their eyes at the age-old parental "Don't drink and drive" refrain, now amended to include "or text and drive".  Noble efforts without a doubt, as drinking and teens should never mix and texting while driving may quickly grow to cause parents more concern than the alcohol/key combination ever has or will.

     So what do we do?  We need to follow the law and lead our children to do the same.  We need to urge our local police to enforce the laws as they've sworn to do.  It's surely important for them to attend to murders and burglaries- but when they have the time to harass a panhandler down on his luck, they need to remember that the papers haven't been riddled with 17 recent panhandling deaths.    

     Let's work together and save some lives, Orlando.