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Battle Flag of the Pedestrians Orange Banner Is the Latest Weapon in the Conflict Between Walker and Driver It's evening rush hour, invitingly warm, sky still bright, and Vee Burke is about to walk into battle against the angry, selfish, reckless, honking hordes. They are armed with V8 engines and fat tires, encased in two tons of steel. Her weapon is a fluorescent orange flag. Burke has lived in this privileged parcel of urban America called Chevy Chase for 58 years, and she ought to be able to cross her own street. Maybe she wants to buy stamps at the post office, or get some paint chips at the hardware store, or pick over the produce gleaming on the sidewalk outside Magruder's. Read Full Article	Crosswalk Flags In August of 2000, as part of the Salt Lake City Pedestrian Safety Committee’s initial efforts to reduce pedestrian involved accidents, flags were placed at six crosswalks in the downtown area. The idea for flags was brought to the attention of the pedestrian safety committee by a City Council staff member who saw them being used at a crosswalk in Ketchum, Idaho. The idea is simple. Place a container of flags at each end of the crosswalk and instruct pedestrians to carry one with them while crossing. The brightly colored flags benefit pedestrians by making them more visible to drivers and the simple act of holding one alerts drivers that the pedestrian has a desire and intent to cross the street (admit it, we’ve all done it – you see a pedestrian standing by the side of the street and you say to yourself, “that person is just standing there and doesn’t really want to cross”, and you drive on by without yielding. With a flag in hand that excuse no longer works; you know the person wants to cross because he/she took the time to pick up a crossing flag!). In addition, many drivers have commented that simply having the brightly colored flags at both ends of a crosswalk makes the crosswalk stand out more, making it easier to notice while on the approach. Read Complete Article	Pedestrian Safety in Kirkland Kirkland Yellow "Pedflag" Safety Program Briefing (for Seattle City Council) on 4/11/08 Comments of Dave Godfrey-Kirkland Public works (expert on the flagging program) Flags Started out with the "manifold" flag candelabras 10 years ago: orange flag, white reflective strip; with pipes welded to a piece of angle iron. Newer idea: yellow flag with a pedestrian holding a flag, going into a plastic (or metal) bucket. Changes came from "social marketing" ideas to increase use. See entire briefing
Adopt A Crosswalk How Communities are Invoved in Supporting the Pedestrian Flag Program. Read about adopt a crosswalk
City of Charleston Pedestrian Safety Commitment Complete Press Release Berkeley's pedestrians to wave way across street Flags at crosswalks provide cheap safety Complete Article Minnesota Issue Watch- Schools sponsor some crosswalks Fourteen intersections are sponsored by city businesses, schools and neighborhood groups. See More	Charleston police lieutenant credited with idea Roper Hospital employees Sherrel Smith and and Robert Rife carry flags as they cross Calhoun Street near Courtenay Street on Wednesday. The flags are a new effort by the City of Charleston and Roper Hospital to improve pedestrian safety at that intersection. (Tyrone Walker/Staff) In an unusual bid to improve traffic safety, pedestrians in Charleston are being urged to carry bright orange flags when they cross Calhoun Street at Courtenay Drive near Roper Hospital.  Hospital employee JoAnn McDowell was struck by a car at that intersection a dozen years ago and was among the first to cross while carrying one of the new 18-inch-square flags Wednesday. Complete Article	Salt Lake City Utah Crosswalk Flags and the Adopt-a-Crosswalk Program Background The Mayor of Salt Lake City in 2000, Rocky Anderson, responded to a national study that declared Salt Lake City as "not pedestrian friendly" by creating a Pedestrian Safety Committee aimed at reducing pedestrian injury accidents. Read More
Kirkland Washington - City Manager Discusses Why & How Pedestrian Flags Work I see moms with their strollers, and seniors, and many of them seem to feel that they're in a protective halo, and that they're automatically safe. Cars go whizzing by. By having this flag, you are out there making contact with the driver. It's not a passive thing, Continue Reading Ideas and Resources for Schools Need some stuff to improve the safety of school crossings? How about some goodies for promotions to highlight road safety? Or events to encourage active travel to school? See Suggestions	PEDFLAG FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Q: How did PedFlag get started? A: PedFlag started in 1995 as an attempt to improve pedestrian safety in Kirkland. It came in the wake of two pedestrian accidents in fall of 1994. Both of these accidents were fatal accidents involving adults. A Kirkland resident saw a similar system in Japan and suggested it be used here. See More Q & A	Orange Flags: Pro,Cons, target and More Two orange flag holders are provided, each with an instruction sign and flags in it. A pedestrian takes a flag, holding it aloft while crossing the street, and places it in the flag holder on the other side of the street. Under the "Adopt-A-Crosswalk" program, individuals living or having businesses within a block of a marked crosswalk may "adopt" the crosswalk by agreeing to monitor the flag containers to insure flags are available as well as purchase replacement flags as needed. Read Full Article