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How to make your neighborhood streets safer

Traffic Safety Measures
Posted at 4:39 PM, May 23, 2021
and last updated 2021-05-24 01:20:34-04

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Following a series of accidents at the intersection of North Jones Boulevard and Pima Street, Lex Gjurasic knew she had to do something.

"We had an accident last May that was a really close call for a family and a baby," Gjurasic, a community member said. "I was like this is bad. "Somethings going to happen and it's going to be worse than just a fender bender."

After that she realized that it wasn't just her that was noticing the accidents but her neighbors as well.

"We'd be having these periodic accidents. They were all happening in the same shape and form," Gjurasic said.

She reached out to the city and eventually got to the Tucson Department of Transportation.

TDOT went to do a safety exam and found that most of the accidents were caused by drivers failing to stop at the stop sign. The city decided to increase the size of the stop sign at the corner, paint safety stripes on the road, and add an additional warning sign ahead of the stop sign.

"We really do rely on the public to be the eyes and ears on what is happening in their neighborhood," Blake Olofson, a Tucson Traffic Safety Engineer, said.

Olofson added that they need the community to tell them about things they are seeing where they live. He said the best way to do that is to send an email to tdotconcerns@tucsonaz.gov with what you are concerned about and be as detailed as possible. He also said adding pictures will help them identify what is going on.

You can find more information on the city's website here.

Olofson said that at the end of the day, it's up to drivers.

"We do all we can to give you those visual cues so that you know what to do and when to do it, but you really need to pay attention to what you are doing at the end of the day."