  Gannon Member Username: Gannon Post Number: 9935 Registered: 12-2003 |
While driving across town earlier, I went through a police-line-taped Campus Martius. Stopped the car to check things out, Channel Four was there with their news truck...as usual the only TV news crew on the scene. Seems around eight o'clock in the evening, a bus hit a pedestrian at the NE bend right in front of the Compuware front door...towards the eastern corner of their building. There was a broken bottle on the ground, by the time I got there...it looked like a smashed liquor bottle. No ambulance, no other evidence. Haven't seen any coverage yet on the 'net. They had it closed up for four hours, finally towing the bus away just after midnight. I'm guessing the pedestrian didn't make it, or they wouldn't have done such a complete investigation. Witnesses said the bus driver thought he was driving over a speed bump. Way those DOT maniacs dash about, it's a wonder they take notice of bumps. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 1548 Registered: 10-2006 |
People OFTEN walk against the light or not at designated cross walks across the Campus Martius traffic circle to get to the park (esp. from Compuware)! Don't be so quick to blame the bus driver. That driver probably isn't feeling so great right now regardless. | ||
Gannon Member Username: Gannon Post Number: 9936 Registered: 12-2003 |
I guess they were waiting on the prognosis of the patient, very glad to learn he's alive. This was also cleary NOT within a designated walk area, I agree with you CharlottePaul wholeheartedly. It is a cluster.... I was just commenting on the speed and aggressiveness of the DOT bus drivers, too many times I see them just flying down the street. They are the ONLY ones so far that have given me any grief as I ride my bicycle around downtown!! | ||
Detroitbill Member Username: Detroitbill Post Number: 307 Registered: 09-2006 |
I agree about bad pedestrian behavior, who knows what happened here but I too have witnessed many pedestrians just flying across the road, not looking and not in a designated area. It is very dangerous sometimes for a driver. I have also seen some very irresponsible driving in that area also. It is very worrisome at times. | ||
E_hemingway Member Username: E_hemingway Post Number: 1308 Registered: 11-2004 |
Gotta agree with Gannon. The DDOT bus drivers can, and often do, drive like maniacs. I always make sure to give them a lot of room not only when I'm walking but also when I am driving. | ||
French777 Member Username: French777 Post Number: 228 Registered: 10-2006 |
http://www.clickondetroit.com/ news/13990909/detail.html He was hit with the mirror Critical condition | ||
Fareastsider Member Username: Fareastsider Post Number: 563 Registered: 08-2006 |
DDot drivers are nuts. When I used to work in the city my partner warned me that if the bus is stoped of not in front of you that you have to watch out for it at anytime because they will pull out with out any care and change lanes anytime. My partner was right! Hell what is your car to that bus! | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 2091 Registered: 10-2003 |
"Posted on Tuesday, August 28, 2007 - 5:29 am: While driving across town earlier, I went through a police-line-taped Campus Martius." Dang Gannon, what time do you get up? | ||
Pam Member Username: Pam Post Number: 2448 Registered: 11-2005 |
quote: I think in Gannon's case the question is-"what time do you go to sleep?"  | ||
Gannon Member Username: Gannon Post Number: 9939 Registered: 12-2003 |
This lunar eclipse has me all screwed up...I'm usually sleeping many, many hours around the full moon, but this month it is bits and fits of two to four hour pieces. Funny, I drove through there somewhere near ten or ten thirty...guess I'd have to check my post times and cell phone...and the fellow hit was already long gone. Hard Rock guard, or Compuware lobby guard told me it happened around eight o'clock...Channel Four says eleven. I guess you can't believe everything you read in the mainstream media. It was odd to have that liquor bottle smashed on the pavement at the point of impact. Bus driver was just sitting there...probably still in shock...doubting his career choice. From all indications, it was not his fault unless he was speeding. Worse to be in one of the adjacent lanes through that circle next to one of those buses...some of the drivers have NO sense of the lane placement of their bussy behemoths. Yesterday afternoon a car was just laying on the horn as a DOT bus squeezed it into the Lafayette one-way lane instead of going straight south onto the two Woodward lanes. The bus had no idea it was almost crushing this little Neon. With all the security cameras firing in that area, they should be able to do a pretty thorough study of all traffic flow. Shame they didn't route pedestrian traffic underground or over a bridge or two...I guess when they designed it they weren't worried about the bi-peds. | ||
Downtownguy Member Username: Downtownguy Post Number: 57 Registered: 07-2004 |
All the years I've lived downtown, when people would ask if I wasn't scared to live here, I would often reply, yes--of the Woodward bus. I've seen them blast through lights that have clearly gone from yellow to red too many times to count. Charlottepaul, for a reason I know not why, some of the traffic signals at CM only flash yellow. Pedestrians get no benefit from that, and just have to wait for a break in traffic. I drove the south end of CM last night entering at Michigan and exiting at Monroe. A guy in an SUV barreled right past me in the left lane through the red light and nearly picked off a pedestrian. Can't always blame these things on the peds. | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 6410 Registered: 02-2004 |
The pedestrian who got hit over by a D-DOT bus must be po'folk drunkard having his good time juice while walking like a caveman through the Campus Martius area. (Message edited by danny on August 28, 2007) | ||
Jimaz Member Username: Jimaz Post Number: 3077 Registered: 12-2005 |
I recently encountered a traffic light with a solid green light and a flashing yellow light at the same time. I'd never seen that before. Was it malfunctioning? If not, what does it mean? I checked Michigan's "What Every Driver Must Know" booklet but it's not mentioned there, at least not in the Signals section. | ||
Islandman Member Username: Islandman Post Number: 841 Registered: 08-2004 |
How many times have all of the lights been green for days on end at CM?? That whole rotary was not such a great idea, IMO. Looks nice, but it creates huge blind spots for drivers. People jaywalking just adds to the danger. | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 5213 Registered: 08-2004 |
The middle of a roundabout is no place to have a park, that's for sure. Even in Paris, the Place Charles DeGaulle (where the Arc d' Triomphe is) has underground tunnels to get you to the Arc. True, it is a horrible intersection, but before Campus Martius Park, it was even worse!  | ||
Gannon Member Username: Gannon Post Number: 9944 Registered: 12-2003 |
I've considered driving, walking, and biking around and across it sport for the past few years...didn't think until last night it was a blood sport. Those DOT drivers play for keeps...and don't get me started on the gang bangers who infect Red Squared...what, Friday nights?! Nothing like a half dozen of Detroit's finest gang squad parked on the median island bringing traffic to a sudden halt around that southern turn. Remember, numbers fans, statistically these 'roundabouts are safer...but that might only be for two streets that used to cross at 90 degrees. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 1554 Registered: 10-2006 |
Campus Martius was probably one of those places that looked like a space that would function really well when some drew it up in CAD or did a nice rendering looking down on it. Thing is though that very few things run as smoothly as planned or as laid out on paper. I think that the light at Monroe has been flashing since Campus Martius was opened. | ||
Buddyinrichmond Member Username: Buddyinrichmond Post Number: 209 Registered: 02-2004 |
Remember that when it opened the lights were all functional and timed to allow crossing into the park on foot from all directions. | ||
Wsugradguy Member Username: Wsugradguy Post Number: 34 Registered: 10-2003 |
LOL, this thread makes me laugh (not the man getting hit part, of course). As a relatively recent transplant to metropolitan New York from Detroit I can tell you that crossing the street in Downtown Detroit is nothing compared to New York (yet) where you have to dodge an entire fleet of crazy cab drivers, crazy motorists, AND crazy bus drivers. Oh yeah, and crazy people on bikes. My friends here still laugh at me when I run across the street as they carelessly meander through the intersection. And I'm not making a Detroit/New York comparison, before people start jumping down my throat. Just sharing how scary it is for this midwestern boy to cross the street in New York. Sounds like Detroit is on its way to busier streets and crazier drivers, be careful. | ||
Atl_runner Member Username: Atl_runner Post Number: 1969 Registered: 10-2003 |
I've almost been taken out by several Bus Mirrors. Problem arises if a bus gets close to a curb, and you are standing, walking, running in my case, anywhere near the curb on the sidewalk. City sidewalks usually are right up to, and even part of the curb, and there is no yellow line that guides you to stand clear. In this case, it's probably a combination of fault, on both the Ped, and the Bus driver.. but more, just a confluence of circumstances that come together and really cannot be avoided, especially on narrow city streets. | ||
Ramcharger Member Username: Ramcharger Post Number: 440 Registered: 05-2006 |
People are so fickle. Just last year Campus Martius Park was hailed as the savor of downtown and touted as one of the greatest urban spaces in the country. Now it’s an ill-conceived death trap. The fact is most people are ignoring the real problem; maniacal bus drivers. All this reminds me of the early 80’s when the city tried to turn Woodward Ave. between GCP and CM into a pedestrian mall. Once private vehicles were banned, the bus drivers thought this stretch of Woodward was their very own motor speedway. They would reach speeds of 60 plus mph sending terrified pedestrians fleeing for their lives. If I recall, several people were run down before the city abandon the concept. The city should remove all the traffic signals around Campus Martius and make them all mandatory stops with speed bumps. The speed limit should not be greater than 10 mph and should be strictly enforced, especially for busses. Any bus driver exceeding the speed limit should be discharged on the spot, no ifs, ands, or buts about it! (Message edited by Ramcharger on August 30, 2007) | ||
Sturge Member Username: Sturge Post Number: 76 Registered: 05-2007 |
Campus Martius isn't a proper roundabout. A true roundabout doesn't need to have traffic signals and allows for easier mergings on and off of it. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 1562 Registered: 10-2006 |
Problem is, that there are about four roads intersecting at Campus Martius, not two--makes it difficult for "a proper roundabout." It cannot be nearly as simple as: http://www.flickr.com/photos/a lbany-new-york-photographer/28 5076332/ Therefore, I am pretty sure that it works better with traffic lights to avoid this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/m emime/163958848/ | ||
Cabasse Member Username: Cabasse Post Number: 57 Registered: 01-2006 |
perhaps a lumpyabout? | ||
Daf Member Username: Daf Post Number: 12 Registered: 02-2007 |
I'd sure feel safer if they fired up the rest of the pedestrian signals - the Monroe ones are dead, and the Fort Street crossing too. | ||
Adamjab19 Member Username: Adamjab19 Post Number: 804 Registered: 11-2003 |
Danny- Your post have been most comical lately. And I mean funny in a LOL kind of way. | ||
Dougw Member Username: Dougw Post Number: 1865 Registered: 11-2003 |
Thank God Campus Martius isn't a proper roundabout, it would be a pedestrian nightmare without any traffic (or pedestrian) signals. It's basically fine the way it is, they just need to turn on the damn pedestrian signals. | ||
Digitalvision Member Username: Digitalvision Post Number: 313 Registered: 11-2003 |
They have traffic lights. They need to turn the damn things off of what seems to be a permanent blink/standby - that would help a ton. It's a P.I.T.A. to make turns if things get busy. This problem would be mostly solved. Let's just say, I've been annoyed by this in the past :-) | ||
Dustin89 Member Username: Dustin89 Post Number: 125 Registered: 07-2006 |
My Dad told me a story about when he was working in Detroit back in either the seventies or eighties, and he watched a woman park on (I think) Woodward Avenue in a Cadillac, and she opened the door and a bus came along at 50 mph and tore it right off, and kept going. I think he said it was a city bus, maybe a school bus. Fortunately, she wasn't hurt. |
