Latest in a series of posts on the environment
Addyson Hamilton is a senior at Liberty High School. Addyson presented this essay at the “Speak out!” Sustainability Forum, part of Touchstone Theatre’s Festival UnBound 2020, September 19. You can view Addyson reading his work here at min. 1:03:13.
School Safety:
Speed Bumps around Liberty High School
Addyson Hamilton
I go to Liberty High School, and when you congregate a large group of new, inexperienced drivers, many issues arise. Car crashes, fender benders, and hitting pedestrians are all things that have happened near or at Liberty High School. Something needs to be done to make our environment safer. Not just safer to avoid injuries but to make the school environment healthier and more conducive to learning. The solution to this issue would be to install speed bumps along the streets of Center, Elizabeth, Linden, and Fairview.
Now I don’t stand alone on this subject. The staff at Liberty High School and the individuals living in the neighboring houses would agree with the installation of speed bumps. The staff, I know, want to arrive at school in a timely and safe manner, and the neighbors don’t want to be concerned with whether or not their car was hit this morning. I live on these streets. I have witnessed on a regular basis car crashes, accidents, dangerous incidents which were the result of carelessness and speeding. To put speed bumps on the high school’s adjacent roads would ensure that people pay attention to what’s going on and slow down the traffic load. It is the community’s responsibility, in my belief, to ensure a safe environment for the young people and not to ignore the fact to many people have gotten seriously injured as a result of poor driving.
I recognize that there are those who would oppose the construction of these speed bumps — taxpayers and even those that go to Liberty. Students don’t want to have to deal with the hassle of slowing down, and taxpayers will resist. I have a solution. A movie night. Held in the stadium and field of Liberty High School, where families can come and pay for a spot on the field, which, for now, would be socially distant from other families. And all the proceeds would go towards installing the speed bumps. Students can come in and staff the event for community service hours and grow a deeper appreciation for the community they live in while helping to protect their friends and youths.
Let us work with Joseph Roy and Mayor Donchez on this issue to ensure the safety of our youth walking to/from school and for all community members walking by the school. I believe strongly that we, as a community, can come together and make this possible. This is doable. By installing speed bumps on the streets surrounding Liberty High School: Linden St., Center St., Elizabeth Ave., and Fairview, we can make our home a better, safer place.
This is a great idea. Helping to pay for it with a movie night or nights is laudable, but should not be necessary. There are a number of locations in Bethlehem where the speed bumps are paid for with tax dollars. That is where these speed bumps should receive their financing.