A pedestrian's nightmare: Grant and Bryant A pedestrian's nightmare: Grant and Bryant (February 03, 2006)

By Tina Hsu

My mother used to regale me with grief-ridden stories about how she had to trudge two miles to school every day, in the cold, the rain, and the snow. I used to brush it off, thankful that times had changed and now cars are the only ones who have to endure numbing weather conditions.

But when I began my freshman year at Mountain View High School, it became my time to walk to school. It was a daunting task with an entirely different challenge than my mother's. I walked with courage, but it quickly waned as I reached the dreaded intersection at the border of Los Altos and Mountain View.

There, at the intersection of Grant Road and Bryant Avenue, thousands of cars drive through every day -- parents dropping off and picking up their children, and people rushing to work. The problem now is, when a person crosses the street at this intersection, you see that the synchronization of the lights is incredibly confusing and dangerous.

When turning onto Grant from Bryant, the light turns green as the cross signal for pedestrians says go. This may be normal for most intersections, but because there is no oncoming traffic, drivers seem to think that they do not have to yield for anyone. Ever since I have been using this light, I have experienced a couple of life-threatening acts that make me wish there was something that could be done to change the present situation.

One day in my sophomore year, I was walking home and I reached the intersection to cross Grant Road at the end of Bryant. There were two other students, one walking and one biking. As soon as the orange hand disappeared and the sign changed to walk, we charged ahead.

A car was turning left and had no idea that pedestrians were crossing, so the woman driving honked at us and gave us a look of disgust for getting in her way. I was appalled that this woman would go so far as to honk at three high school students crossing the street. We were not jaywalking or dawdling through the crosswalk, but she did not realize that the normal intersection rules still hold true at this one.

This year I turned 16 and am able to drive to school, so a few days ago, as I was sitting at the aforementioned intersection behind another car, a handicapped student from Mountain View was waiting to cross the road. When the light turned green, the car ahead of me propelled forward at the same moment that the student was starting to cross the street, and barely missed the girl.

The student jumped with shock that she was almost run over. Her handicap cannot be blamed for this act, because it could have happened to anyone. The signal said walk. I was frightened for this girl, and angered that this driver was so careless as to charge forward into the intersection without a second thought.

A sign should be put up, stating that left turns yield to pedestrians, or some other form of warning so no more dangerous acts will be displayed. The cities of Los Altos and Mountain View have always shown the greatest care for their citizens' safety and lives. Only once have I felt threatened in these cities -- when I was walking home from school. Please let this issue be known to the city and citizens alike so that a change can be considered.
Tina Hsu is a Mountain View High School student. She lives on Portland Avenue in Los Altos.

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