ST. LOUIS (First Alert 4) — Two pedestrians were struck and killed within hours of each other in the St. Louis region. One man died in a hit-and-run in South City. Early Wednesday morning, a 64-year-old was killed while walking in St. Charles.
“No, it doesn’t surprise me at all. It infuriates me,” says Charles Bryson of Trailnet.
Trailnet is an advocacy group working to make walking, biking, and commuting better in St. Louis. According to a 2023 report, eight people were killed while walking in the city, and 225 were hurt.
According to St. Louis City Metropolitan Police, nine pedestrians have been killed so far in 2024.
“The city has not taken any steps to reduce pedestrian crashes and fatalities and to increase their safety, and that’s a problem,” Bryson says.
On Tuesday, 63-year-old pedestrian Floyd Lucas was killed after being struck by a driver in the 4400 block of Chippewa. Police say the driver fled and are searching for the person behind the wheel of the 2018 Nissan Altima.
Around 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, 64-year-old Dennis Butts died after a driver hit him in the 2100 block of Santa Catalina in St. Charles.
On Thursday, Urban League STL will launch a campaign to increase traffic safety and target dangerous streets threatening the region.
The St. Charles County Executive released the following statement to First Alert 4 in response to the initiative and traffic violence.
“The way to slow people down is to give them tickets and make them go to court, and if they don’t show up, arrest them, and put them in jail,” says Steve Elhmann, St. Charles County Executive.”If you want people to change their behavior, you’ve got to punish them. You’re not going to solve this problem without more police and prosecutors who prosecute the law.”
Mayor Tishaura Jones recently signed a safer streets bill to use ARPA funding to address roads and traffic calming measures. In May, Jones also signed new legislation to bring back red light cameras.
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