OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – UW-Oshkosh Police say students are putting themselves and drivers at risk on campus.
Road rules are being ignored, forcing drivers to be on constant alert.
High Avenue and Algoma Boulevard are the two busiest streets for drivers on campus, according to UW-Oshkosh police.
Both streets have two lanes going one-way.
Drivers tell FOX 11, it can be a nightmare.
“A lot of students just like don’t stop,” said Hanna Malec. “I don’t know, it can be scary because you obviously don’t want to hit someone. “
But some students disagree saying, sometimes drivers also don’t stop.
“I mean you always want the cars to stop and hope for the best, but you never really know if it’s going to happen or not,” UW-Oshkosh student, Gabriella Wood said.
FOX 11 stood near the Algoma Blvd. crosswalk for 10 minutes, we saw many pedestrians cross without the right-of-way. In fact, only one person pushed the button to stop traffic.
UW-Oshkosh Police hope to change that culture through the ‘pedestrian safety initiative’.
“One of the core concepts of this initiative was to create respect again,” explained University Police Capt. Chris Tarmann.
Tarmann said officers will be out educating students on how to use crosswalks.
“We have extra police presence in certain areas of campus, but we’re telling our community this is where we’re going to be, this is when we’ll be there.”
If students are caught doing the right thing, they’ll receive a safety token. Three tokens will get them a t-shirt from the police department.
And breaking the rules will bring punishments. The first time could be a warning. Tarmann says the next could mean a ticket.
“We don’t really wanna do that because $150 is the cheapest one.”
It’s a lot of money for students, but even they agree something needs to change.
“I think if any rule is going to be in the books, the police should be willing to enforce it,” said Blair Necas, a UW-Oshkosh student.
Police say fines for violating crosswalk laws can go up to more than $300.
