Lindenwood-Belleville students feel safe despite pedestrian accident

Students say they feel safe on the streets around Lindenwood University Belleville despite the fact that a classmate was seriously injured when she was hit by a car Sunday night.

The student, whose name was not released by school officials or police, was struck by a car at about 8:30 p.m. Sunday as she crossed West Main Street.

Belleville Police Department Sgt. Mark Heffernan said the injuries were “serious but not life-threatening.”

Derrick Otto, an accounting student from Plainville, Mass., who attends Lindenwood-Belleville on a bowling scholarship, said students have to stay alert on the roads that split the campus from its dorms and other housing.

“If I could change one thing I’d put a crosswalk right in front of the men’s dorm like the one they have at the women’s dorm,” Otto, 19, said. “Nobody wants to walk down to the end of the block to cross and then have to walk back.”

According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, about 10,400 cars pass through West Main Street per day in front of the Lindenwood campus. Traffic is even busier farther to the west where the road widens to four lanes.

The steps of the men’s dorm are about seven feet from the curb of West Main Street, making it tempting for students to rush across West Main Street instead of taking a less direct route to the crosswalk.

Otto said it’s not usually a problem crossing West Main, but he noted that traffic seems to be at its busiest around the noon hour when a lot of students make the trek from their residence across West Main Street to the dining hall.

“I usually jog across so I don’t have to spend any more time than necessary in the road,” Otto said.

While most drivers are courteous, he said some don’t slow down at all near the school. The speed limit is 25 mph in front of the campus dating back to the days when it served as Belleville Township High School and later Belleville West High School, and students crossed the road on their way to and from school. But some drivers seemed to pass through campus Monday at a considerably faster rate.

McKayla Green, a 19-year-old criminal justice major from Las Vegas, said the woman who was struck Sunday is her roommate.

The accident victim was returning from a trip to work out with members of the school wrestling team when she was hit. The victim was walking alone at the time.

“You have to be careful because a lot of drivers aren’t too courteous,” Green said. “They honk their horns at people crossing the street and sometimes it seems like they speed up” when they see people in the road.

Bill White, of Pontoon Beach, said he drives between the St. Clair County Courthouse and the law offices that line West Main Street on a regular basis. He doesn’t think the increased number of pedestrians crossing the road as Lindenwood has grown is a problem.

“I think this is a pretty safe street,” White said. “I think the students are careful and courteous when they cross the street, for the most part.”

White said Belleville residents should be thankful Lindenwood chose to locate its metro-east campus on the site of a soon-to-be abandoned high school; so it’s up to people who drive past the campus as much as it is the students to work together for safety.

“It would be a huge waste of money to build some sort of overpass here,” White said. “It’s completely unnecessary.”

White said if anything is done, a few more crosswalks should be added to make it more obvious where motorists should look for students.

Matt Martin, a neighbor of the university who frequently walks in the area, agreed.

“A couple more crosswalks would be good because no one wants to walk all the way down the street to the corner to cross,” Martin said. “Besides that, people just need to be smart. Kids need to know to look for cars like they should. If they do that, there won’t be a problem.”

Heffernan said he can’t remember any other pedestrian-related accidents on West Main Street near the school recently.

Lindenwood University-Belleville President Brett Barger said the victim is going to be okay and that she is expected to be back at school in a few days.

“Thankfully, she appears to be doing well,” Barger said.

Belleville Fire Department Chief Tom Pour said the victim was conscious and alert at the scene. He said she suffered head and back injuries and that she was transported to St. Louis University hospital for treatment.

“It didn’t appear that her injuries were life-threatening,” Pour said. “But you can never say for sure with a head injury until they get to the hospital and are checked out.”

Traffic was stopped in both directions on West Main Street by the fire department which placed its engines across the roadway. The road was closed for about an hour on Sunday night.

According to police reports, the pedestrian was crossing West Main Street to the north when she was struck by a westbound 2006 Saturn Ion.

The driver of the car, a 28-year-old woman, has not been cited in relation to the accident. Police said she remained at the scene and was cooperative with investigators.

This story was originally published May 2, 2016 at 9:49 AM with the headline "Lindenwood-Belleville students feel safe despite pedestrian accident."