Recap: World Day of Remembrance in SLC
On November 17th, 2024, Sweet Streets held its first ever World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims in Salt Lake City, in unison with events in Provo, Logan, and throughout the country. The event brought together various advocacy organizations representing Salt Lake City and beyond, local leaders, and members of our community, all of whom agree that we should prioritize safety over speed on our streets. The event even received support from Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, who signed a mayor’s proclamation for this day of remembrance.
The event started with a sidewalk chalk memorial, where community members commemorated those lost due to traffic violence, voiced support for people-first streets, and encouraged biking as a means to bring joy back to transportation. Meanwhile, members of Sweet Streets, Bike Utah, Save Not Pave, Spin, Unplugged Wellness, and the Salt Lake City Council chatted with community members who came to remember those lost due to traffic violence and get more involved in advocating for safer streets for all.
Speakers at the event included Julian Jurkoic (Sweet Streets), Jordan Bartholomew (Bike Utah), Micki Harris (Save Not Pave), and Dan Dugan (Salt Lake City Council).
Julian is a board member for Sweet Streets and a trained small aircraft pilot. Julian made a comparison of the safety of air travel versus safety on our roadways. For air travel, it’s huge news if there is a plane crash, or even a malfunction. Not only is it in the news, but we have federal agencies that investigate the incident in an attempt to avoid future incidents. Meanwhile, crashes happen all the time on our roads, leading to over 40,000 deaths and injuries in the millions in the United States per year, yet society carries on like nothing happened the following day (except for the impacted person and their friends and family). What is needed is a cultural shift. We need a society that does not consider death and injury as ‘the cost of doing business’, a society that demands better, safer streets, and a society with government officials who not only investigate and improve roads where crashes happen, but are also proactive in upgrading our roads to prioritize safety before a crash happens.
Jordan is the Community Engagement/Education Specialist at Bike Utah. Jordan described some of the work Bike Utah is doing to advocate for safer streets at a state level and in local communities.
Micki Harris is the president of Save Not Pave from Cottonwood Heights. Micki shared her personal experiences with traffic violence, including the tragic loss of two family members in separate incidents. These incidents involved inattentive driving and unsafe road infrastructure, and were completely preventable. Micki now advocates for safe infrastructure in her community, particularly on Wasatch Blvd, which is currently designed like a highway and planned for expansion into a 7-lane thoroughfare.
Salt Lake City Councilmember Dan Dugan was the concluding speaker. Dan encouraged community members to reach out to their council members and other elected leaders to ask for safe streets. He shared some of the recent actions the city has taken to work towards Vision Zero, which is the goal of zero traffic deaths or serious injuries. These include lowered speed limits, a traffic calming program, major street reconstructions, and implementation of leading pedestrian intervals at some intersections. However, continued support from the community is needed, and the council and mayor need to know that safe streets are a priority for Salt Lakers.
Salt Lake City Councilmember Dan Dugan addresses the crowd at Liberty Park on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims in Salt Lake City, November 17, 2024
The event continued with a walk to a recent crash site and a candlelight vigil for all of those who were victims of road traffic violence in the Salt Lake community over the past year. According to Salt Lake City, 66 people have lost their lives since 2021, with 45% involving a pedestrian or bicyclist. The crash at the site involved a woman who was walking on the sidewalk on 700 East near 700 South when a driver fell asleep at the wheel, crashing into a parked car at high speed, which then struck the woman, killing her. 700 East is a state owned (UDOT) highway with a speed limit of 40 mph and design that encourages high speeds and low driver attention. The highway cuts through the east side of the city, including residential neighborhoods, the city’s largest and most used park, and mixed use developments. Unfortunately, many of the traffic deaths and serious injuries occur on UDOT highways, and the state insists on prioritizing vehicle speed and throughput over safety, even in population centers.
