Let's make our streets safer for everyone

The following letter to the editor from AARP Nebraska State Director Connie Benjamin was recently published in several Nebraska newspapers.

Crossing the street shouldn’t mean putting your life at risk. Safe, well-designed streets and crosswalks are vital to our communities.

Tragically, a pedestrian is killed every two hours in the U.S. In 2013, one-fifth of children under age 14 killed in traffic crashes were pedestrians.

Older adults are also exceptionally vulnerable, comprising 20 percent of all pedestrian deaths. In fact, nearly half of adults age 50 and older surveyed by AARP said they could not safely cross the main streets in their neighborhoods.

The Senate recently passed legislation including bipartisan, pedestrian safety improvements sponsored by Sens. Brian Schatz, a Democrat from Hawaii, and Dean Heller, a Republican from Nevada . The amendment moves us toward ensuring that transportation investments provide safe travel for pedestrians and everyone who uses the road, regardless of their age or ability.