Senate Bill 395 was introduced earlier this year in the Oregon Legislature in order to address the high number of fatalities of people walking and bicycling. Here are a few who were killed that brings the reality closer to home:
January 2021, a 61-year-old pedestrian was killed while walking across River Road. August 2020, a pedestrian was killed on West 7th Avenue. April 2020, a bicyclist was killed on Royal Avenue. February 2020, Sharon Rene Pritchard, 52, a pedestrian, was killed while crossing River Road. January 2019, Irene Ferguson, 70, a pedestrian, was struck and killed by a car along Hunsaker Lane.
The Governor’s Highway Safety Association calculates that there were 6,590 pedestrian fatalities in 2019. In 2009, 4,302 pedestrians were killed by drivers, representing a 46 percent increase in deaths over 10 years.
Please contact state Sen. Lee Beyer, 503-986-1706, Sen.LeeBeyer@oregonlegislature.gov, co-chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation and tell him to stop the blood bath on our roads, highways and vote for this bill.
Richard Hughes
Eugene
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519
Comments are closed.