Frederique Rowe lost her on-year old daughter, Skylar Perkins who was killed in her pink stroller by a truck.
She was killed on 23rd Ave in Elmhurst. The mother was crossing when the light turned green but the driver making a turn in his truck apparently didn’t realize pedestrians have the right of way.
This case is one of many deaths by careless drivers who are too much in a hurry to care about pedestrians who follow the rules of crossing the street.
For the most part pedestrians follow the rules of crossing at the green not in between.
Now I can testify to that fact because last year I didn’t not have a car for six weeks and had to take three buses in one direction and back and forced to cross various intersections. I traveled back and forth between Bellerose and Mineola. I had to cross at one point at Lakeville Road and Union turnpike and another intersection at New Hyde Park Road and Jericho Turnpike and found it dangerous.
The traffic lights seem to me to favor the on going traffic and not the pedestrians.
I seem to wait a long time for the lights to turn green so I could cross safely. I am a senior citizen and have bad knees and can’t walk too fast to get across the street.
When I cross at the green when the light tells me to walk and a couple of times I was almost hit by cars trying to make their turns in a hurry.
At times I was forced to hold up my hands in a motion to stop cars and hope I would not get hit.
Now I am driving again and I am increasingly aware of the pedestrians in the walkway and proceed with caution.
I only wish other drivers would show more concern and follow the rules of the road in regard to pedestrians.
If this does not happen more children like Skylar will surely die for no reason. In closing my heartfelt prayers go out to Frederique Rowe who lost her most precious daughter to a careless driver.
A mothers’ grief of a loss of a child is most sad indeed.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.
Mineola
