After a car struck three students on South Street on Feb. 2, new safety measures are moving forward. Following the accident, Waltham Police presence near the crosswalk was heightened in order to enforce lower speed limits and overall caution, as requested by Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan.

A plan to implement more safety measures was created by Callahan and Waltham city officials following the accident. The enhancements are being paid for by the University.

These improvements include brighter streetlights near the crosswalk, rapid-flash beacons "that have been shown to increase drivers' attention" and spotlights focused on the crosswalk, Senior Vice President for Communications Ellen de Graffenreid wrote in a Feb. 24 statement. "When the strobe lights are eventually installed they will be a brighter flashing light similar to police vehicle lights," Callahan wrote in an email to the Justice.

Another major enhancement is a motion detector system at the South Street crosswalk by the Linsey Complex so that pedestrians would not need to push the button in order to activate the crosswalk. The system is "something we are reviewing from a technological perspective," Callahan wrote in an email to the Justice. "I am waiting to receive information about the motion system which I imagine would involve some type of passive detection system."

A motion detector system could pose a problem for Shabbat observant students. "We would appreciate a notification before it is installed so we can inform students who might be concerned about issues of Sabbath observance," President of Brandeis Orthodox Organization Noam Cohen said in an interview with the Justice. "Still, Orthodox students will be able to cross at the bridge, so it does not seem to be a problem. Almost anything to make the crosswalk safer is a welcome change."

One current problem, according to Callahan, is that "the crosswalk buttons have been checked and function, but many community member[s] opt not to use them." Prior to the installation of the motion detector system, more prominent signs will be placed on crosswalk poles instructing pedestrians to "Please Push Button to Activate Lights." These signs have already been purchased and will be installed shortly, according to Callahan. They will stay up even after the motion detector system is installed, since the existing buttons will stay in place as backup.

"I do not have a timeline for these enhancements as of yet," Callahan wrote. However, Public Safety and Waltham officials are working as quickly as possible to implement these improvements, weather permitting.

The students were hit by a 42-year-old Bedford, Mass. resident while they were crossing South Street in the crosswalk by Linsey Pool and Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. The students, an 18-year-old female, an 18-year-old male and a 22-year-old female, were taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Two of the students were released from the hospital the next day.
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