David Ruiz on becoming a film producer, the Guadalajara museum challenge, San Juan de Dios riot
The ambivalence elected officials generally show toward pedestrians in Guadalajara borders on the criminal. Virtually relegated to the status of fourth- or fifth-class citizens, pedestrians risk their lives on a daily basis as they negotiate hair-raisingly tricky intersections completely lacking any kind of infrastructure for those hoping to get around the city on their own two feet. The car is king in Guadalajara – yes of course it is, politicians drive really nice ones!
However, there’s a sad conclusion to be drawn from the 147 pedestrian deaths registered in Guadalajara in the first six months of 2014. Not all of them can be blamed on motorists. While wayward, egocentric and distracted drivers cause many of the fatalities, pedestrians are themselves often at fault. In large part, this is because they have never driven a car, are blissfully unaware of the rules of the road and have no sixth sense about how drivers behave. They also frequently try to take short cuts instead of use whatever – albeit minimal – infrastructure (such as pedestrian bridges) is available.
Which is why a new program to be unveiled this weekend by the Jalisco Transportation Department (Semov) should be fully embraced.
The aim of Camina Segura (Walk Safely) is to educate citizens about pedestrian culture – both drivers and those who habitually walk the streets – as well as reduce the number of fatalities. A major goal is to impress on drivers the need to respect pedestrian crossing zones at traffic lights and intersections – something that is probably ignored by 95 percent of Tapatio drivers.
The campaign will start by targeting 20 intersections considered among the most dangerous for pedestrians in the metro area. Semov personnel will be out in force distributing information leaflets, car stickers and souvenirs (key rings). They will also hand out red and green “cards” that they hope motorists will use to give a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” to drivers and pedestrians who do or don’t conduct themselves appropriately. (Let’s hope this won’t lead to an increase in road rage.)
Intersections targeted in the campaign include 16 de Septiembre and Juarez, Union and Morelos, Lazaro Cardenas and Colon and Lopez Mateos and Mariano Otero.
In itself, the new campaign may not amount to much, as it will reach only a small minority of Guadalajara’s 2.5 million drivers. Additionally, authorities here are notorious for starting promising programs only to allow them to fizzle out for lack of money and, often, enthusiasm. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that this time, the campaign isn’t a short-term flight of fancy but manages to plant a seed that can eventually lead to a real improvement in pedestrian safety.
