The intersections of Capitol and Sixth at Broadway in Little Rock have been named by city officials as one of the most dangerous intersections in the city for pedestrians.
Dave Ingram, with Entergy Arkansas, said an Entergy employee died after being hit by a car in the downtown area.
“It was during a routine emergency evacuation, fire drill, from this building and we have several different rally points for people to get away safely. That’s when the accident happened. It was just a pedestrian accident. Unfortunate. The employee was in the crosswalk but unfortunately, the driver didn’t notice him,” said Ingram.
Ingram is concerned that more people are using cell phones and iPods when driving or crossing the streets and not paying attention.
Becky Newberry, who works at the Lion Building, on Broadway, said, “I know since I’ve been working here, there have been four people who have been hit by cars crossing the street going to and from their parking lot. And it’s really dangerous. People don’t pay attention to the stop sign. Here you can turn right on red so they just turn right. They don’t look to see if there’s someone trying to cross the street.”
A homeless person living around the downtown area, said in the last two years he has been hit three times by cars.
He wished there will be more law enforcement officers in downtown Little Rock.
Sharon Priest, with the Downtown Little Rock Partnership, has been campaigning this whole month of April to increase safety for pedestrians.
“We will be working diligently throughout the year to look at solutions to many of these problems. We’ve talked about solutions at different press conferences,” said Priest.
Priest said more input from area residents is needed.
So far, cutting four lanes to three and putting in a 4-way stop have been some of the solutions for different intersections.
The other dangerous and busy intersections the group featured are intersection at 3rd and Louisiana (the site of eStem school), La Harpe/Cumberland and President Clinton/Markham, and South Main and 15th.
