Archived Edition: April 18, 2007 | Back to Current	Sep 09, 2010

Look before you leap

Last Friday night, I was driving east on Route 2. As I passed Goodrich, I nearly struck an unidentified girl dressed in dark clothes making her way across the street. In all honesty, I just did not see her until she was about a car length away from me. Should I have slowed down, knowing that a crosswalk was coming up? Probably. But should she have been in the middle of the road when a car was approaching? Probably not. I wish this was an isolated incident, but the fact is that I could tell similar stories about one time on Southworth Street and another time entering Lawrence Hall Drive. Why do so many students neglect to take their personal safety into account when crossing the street in Williamstown?

Technically, cars must stop for pedestrians crossing the streets on campus. A backwards walking tour guide told us of this luxury the first time we visited Williams. However, along with this luxury comes a sense of entitlement, and I wonder if we are getting too comfortable.

There are a number of reasons why a car would not stop for a student, and therefore equally many reasons why we should be more aware of our surroundings. During the day, drivers frequently cruise through Williamstown, some of whom are completely unaware of the law. And at night, when visibility is limited, we cannot assume that drivers can see us. I cannot count the number of times a car has passed without touching the brakes as I wait at the crosswalk to make my way across the street. I do not know exactly why we are so careless about something that could be potentially life threatening. I just ask that we be more careful.

I figured that after seeing me brake hard and swerve around her, the student that I almost hit would at least glare back in anger. But no, she did not even flinch as she continued crossing at her leisure, with the white wires of an iPod hanging from her ears.



Chris Chiang ’09