INDIANAPOLIS — Close calls, people hit, some deadly.
It's no secret there seems to be a pedestrian safety issue in Indianapolis.
The Indy Pedestrian Safety Crisistracks the issue, and say 47 people were hit and killed in 2023 in Indianapolis. They also report more than 680 incidents.
It's an issue Indy DPW says they are trying to tackle.
"This is something that is obviously top of mind for all of our traffic safety engineers, this is the stuff that keeps them up at night. Always looking to try to find a way to get you more safely from point A to point B whether you are in a vehicle, on foot, or on a bicycle," Kyle Bloyd with DPW said.
DPW has a number of projects slated this year to try and help with pedestrian safety.
Currently underway, DPW crews are doing storm water improvements along Meridian Street.
The crews are also doing some pedestrian improvements there from Pine to Highland.
Those include new ADA ramps and sidewalk improvements.
Just down the street they will start construction on a new multi-use trail.
Down Southeastern Ave, not far from the Community Justice Campus, is where the new trail will be placed.
The trail will go down Southeastern from Leeds to Washington.
The $2.1 million project will stretch just over a mile and will include rehabbed ADA ramps and crosswalks.
Neighbors say it's much needed.
"I mean just the other night I was walking through here and a car came. I had just crossed this street and a car came straight through this yard and just missed me," Indianapolis resident Jeffery Smith said.
Construction on the new trail is expected to start next week and should be done later this year.
"I think all across the county you are seeing Indy DPW putting an emphasis on pedestrian and cyclist safety. Whether it is something form increased singe, updated technology, new technologies or in this case a larger capital project. There is something that can hopefully fit for each neighborhood," Bloyd said.
