The Chapel Hill Police Department will perform four special traffic-safety initiatives in September—in addition to normal patrols—with the main goal of improving safety for pedestrians.

• Friday, September 3, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Thursday, September 9, 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Friday, September 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Friday, September 24, 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

*Dates and times are subject to change

Each effort will focus on areas with heavy pedestrian and bicycle traffic, including downtown, and mid-block crosswalks (ex. along the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard corridor). We encourage everyone traveling, regardless of your mode of transportation, to remember that community safety is a shared responsibility.

Chapel Hill Police will also perform three speed enforcement operations this month:

• Tuesday, September 7,  6 a.m. to 8 a.m.
• Tuesday, September 14, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
• Tuesday, September 21, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Please use the following tips to improve safety for everyone on and near the roads:

• Limit distractions
• Phones down; eyes up (this is true for people driving, walking, riding a bike, and rolling)
• Keep your music at an appropriate level to hear what’s happening outside your car or around you
• Yield to pedestrians in crosswalks
• State law says all vehicles must yield to pedestrians once they have safely entered a crosswalk
• Please use designated crosswalks to cross roads
• Walk against traffic; ride with traffic
• People walking that don’t have access to sidewalks should walk in the opposite direction as traffic
• People riding bicycles should ride in a bike lane or in the same direction as traffic if there isn’t a designated path
  • Bicycles are permitted to ride on the sidewalk except downtown (Franklin and Rosemary streets) and on the east side of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in front of the Chapel Hill Police Department

The Town will utilize its variable message sign (VMS) boards throughout Town to alert people driving of the events as well as encouraging them to limit distractions and watch out for people walking and people riding their bikes.

The Road to Zero

The 2019 Pedestrian Safety Action Plan is a key component in turning the Town’s Road to Zero commitment into a reality. This plan lays out strategies to address pedestrian safety concerns through policy, infrastructure, and programming. The Road to Zero Task Force advises implementation of the Pedestrian Safety Action Plan with a focus on equity, public engagement, safe routes to school, and data analysis. Read more: Road to Zero